Clash of the Demons
by Rassilon001
Summary: In a world of darkness where man and demons clash for supremacy, a child is born of both races that embodies their best, and worst, attributes. Is he the savior meant to bring back faith in humanity and demons alike? Or will he tear down the entire world in his grief and his rage?
1. Long Long Ago

**Disclaimer:  
** I do not own Inuyasha: A Feudal Fairy Tale, Clash of the Titans (2010), or any of the associated characters or universes. They belong to Sunrise, Legendary Pictures, Warner Brothers, Rumiko Takahashi and Greek Mythology.

 **Summary:  
** In a world of darkness where man and demons clash for supremacy, a child is born of both races that embodies their best, and worst, attributes. Is he the savior meant to bring back faith in humanity and demons alike? Or will he tear down the entire world in his grief and his rage? Rated PG-13 for action violence and some mild cursing.

* * *

 _The very oldest stories ever told are written in the stars, set as constellations that will forever tell the greatest of deeds for millennia to come. Stories of time before men and gods, when great demons ruled the Earth. And Magatsuhi, the greatest of them all, ruled over them all._

 _The elder demons were powerful, but their reign was ended by the rise of their own sons: Inutaisho, Choro, and Naraku. Who would go on to become the great demon lords._

 _Many years the three brothers spent in secret, gaining power, forging weapons, and preparing for war. But it was not yet enough. Inutaisho convinced his brother, Naraku, to create a beast so strong that they could defeat their parents, the elder demons. And from his own flesh, Naraku gave birth to an unspeakable horror._

 _Ryukoytsei. The Dragon of Doom._

 _With this mighty beast at their side and weapons in their hands, the war was swiftly over. Magatsuhi was cast down and his sons became the new demon rulers of the world._

 _Inutaisho became King of the Heavens._

 _Choro... Master of the Seas._

 _And Naraku, tricked by Inutaisho, was left to rule the Underworld as its Lord, in darkness and in despair._

 _It was Inutaisho who then drew man together, protecting them and guiding them, and man's prayers fed the Demons' power and immortality as they were worshipped like Gods. But in time, mankind grew restless and bold. They begun to question their Gods and finally began to rise up against them._

 _Into this world of chaos and bloodshed, a child was born. A boy who would change everything. On the night of the new moon, he was born._

 _Inuyasha._

* * *

That night, the campfire burned low. A storm was building on the horizon, as lightning flashed and thunder crashed. It shook little Inuyasha down to the bones, and he held a hand over his heart as he watched the storm play out, feeling a connection to it he could not put into words. Only a boy of seven, he watched the heavens for answers to his questions, unable to find them from anyone else. The same questions all boys needed to answer at some point or another in their lives.

Who am I?

His mother and father watched him from the fire, exchanging a look, knowing their son had been in a mood of late, angry and tense, lashing out quickly and just as quick to apologize for his frustrations. Laying a hand over his wife's belly, the boys father suspected he knew what troubled young Inuyasha. He stepped away from the warmth of the campfire for a moment, making his way to the boy's side.

"What is it, son?" his father asked, settling down into a seat beside him.

The young, white-haired boy didn't raise his head, and his dog ears were low and flat, a tell-tail sign of his unhappiness. "I will have a brother or a sister soon," he said.

And like that, everything became crystal clear. It wasn't easy for a child not bound to you by blood to understand the love a family shared, questions and confusion would always be there, but family love would never depart or diminish from something so simple as that.

"You think we're gonna love this child differently than the way we love you..." his father said kindly. "But we won't.

"But this child will be yours. And me... I'm no one's son," he lamented.

The older man shook his head, throwing an arm around the boy. "That's not true. I'm your father, Inuyasha. Izayoi is your mother, and you'll _always_ be our son."

Inuyasha lifted his head, gazing up at him with golden eyes watery with unshed tears.

"The bond between us, is much more than flesh and bone. But the love we have for you, it's that love that Kings and Demons fight over."

He nodded, though in truth, Inuyasha wasn't sure he understood.

"I never understood the Fates, I'm just a fisherman... I probably wasn't meant to," his father added with a shrug. "But even I don't question that you were saved for a reason, Inuyasha. And someday, that reason, is gonna take you far away from here. On adventures unlike anything you could even imagine."

He smiled down at his son, and Inuyasha managed a tiny smile in return. The lightning flashed overhead once more, illuminating the small family.

"But not tonight. It's late and you should get to bed, or your mother'll worry."

Pouting, the pale-haired child obediently slid off his rock and headed back to the home he shared with his mother and father. Tonight he would have no bad dreams, no more fears of waking up to find them gone, to find himself abandoned, unwanted, unloved.

Tonight his dreams would be pleasant and peaceful.

* * *

"Inuyasha! Inuyasha!" his father called out, feeling his grip already starting to slip. The winds were very strong today, and the rope slick.

"You're getting old, pops," Inuyasha said with a grin, grabbing the rope tight in one hand and pulling it down, as the older man made his way to the nets.

Twelve years had passed. Inuyasha had grown tall and strong. Though lean of figure, his body held strength not readily apparent in his slight frame. His features were handsome and striking, particularly when he smiled, though of late he more often wore a frown or a snarl, showcasing canine teeth sharp as a dogs. He retained the golden eyes and flowing white hair of his youth, a permanent reminder of who he was and what he was. Though in truth, he'd long since ceased to care.

He was a fisherman, and the son of Izayoi. That was all that mattered.

"Izayoi! Izayoi!" his father cried. "Help me with the net!"

Between the two of them, they hauled it up, but when it finally cleared the deck, they saw the interwoven strands were empty of naught but more saltwater. Not a single fish caught, for all their efforts. The entire day had been like that.

As had the last day, and the one before it, and so on for nearly a week now. The last time they'd caught something it had been a morsel barely worth keeping around as supper. Throwing his hands up in disgust, Inuyasha's father cursed the heavens above for their lack of bounty. "To whom do we direct our gratitude for this _glorious_ bounty?" he asked sarcastically.

"Spare us, please," Izayoi pleaded gently, ushering her younger son to her side. Inuyasha's little brother Sota watched silently as the parents continued their quarrel. Or rather, their father continued his quarrel with the air as if addressing the demon lords.

"To whom do we thank?! Choro?! Inutaisho?!"

"Thank the men who provoked them," Izayoi replied evenly.

He clearly disagreed, still caught up in his rant. "They crushed my island, they put a plague on yours. They take from us what they want and give only when they feel like it. We are little better than slaves," he lamented.

"The Demon Lords have guided us and protected us since time eternal," Izayoi pointed out. "They have protected our lives. Given us the tools and skills to build civilization. For that, we should always strive to be thankful."

"I'm tired of being thankful for _scraps_ ," he said, thumping down on his backside as the boat listed back and forth. "I am a fisherman, Inuyasha is a fisherman, and they've even taken that away from us. What we are. And still they want us to love them anyway."

Inuyasha had to concede, his old man had a very valid point. Not that it would do them much good. The demon lords ruled, their might was unquestionable and unparalleled. Rising against them or provoking their wrath would only make things worse in the long run.

His dad evidently disagreed. "One day, somebody's gonna have to make a stand. One day somebody's gonna have to say _enough_."

Hoping he lived long enough to see that day, Inuyasha went back to his work, casting out the nets in the hope they could catch one more thing before they had to return home.

* * *

Inuyasha could not sleep that night. There was a thunderstorm on the horizon. The thunder rattled in his bones, the lightning seemed to flash behind his eyes. Though as of yet no rain fell upon them, he could not sleep. He paced the decks instead like a nervous animal, pacing back and forth, shoulders hunched and hackles up.

"Just like the day you came to me," came a voice, and Inuyasha turned. His old man was there, watching him. Approaching him to rest a hand on his shoulder. And like always, it calmed the shaking, made him almost forget about the storm. "The storm brought me right to you," he reminisced.

For a moment the two men stood side by side, watching the horizon. Thinking of the past and the future alike.

"I know you have questions, son," he said, sighing. "I truly wish I had the answers."

Inuyasha turned to him, and managed a smile. "It's fine, dad. I have everything I need right here."

And that was just the right thing to say, it seemed. His old man could not have looked prouder.

"Good night, son," he said, descending back into the ship. Inuyasha almost joined him, but turned to watch a particularly bright flash of lightning on the horizon. A frown creased his brow as he waited for the thunder to follow. The storm was coming closer... and it promised to be a big one.

* * *

With their nets still empty the next day, the small family had little choice but to return home. As they did, they passed close to the coastline of Edo, the fair winds guiding them along the rocky beaches at a suitable distance. And it was there that they saw the great statue of Inutaisho.

The Great Dog Demon, the King of the Heavens.

His statue was carved of stone and stood nearly fifty feet in height, dwarfing all but the largest ships who came across the inlet. A sword was held up in his clawed hand, raised high and ready to be smote upon the enemy. In the statue's stone features were captured Inutaisho's majesty and his ferocity, but also his wisdom and his love. It was truly the image of a great demon.

For all intensive purposes, a God.

As their ship approached closer, however, Inuyasha and his family saw a worrisome sight. The statue was teetering, caught in the pull of gravity. Men were at the base of the great stone feet, with ropes and pickaxes, chipping away at the granite ankles until the entire thing came crashing down over the Cliffside, splashing right into the water and shattering.

Fortunately, they were well enough away from the sudden swells to weather them. Even so, Inuyasha grabbed Sota and held dearly onto the boy to ensure he wasn't swept away as their ship rocked against the waves. Cheers erupted from the cliffside by the soldiers who'd defiled the statue, roaring in good spirits at their defiance. Inuyasha glared up at their carelessness and stupidity. _Pick a fight if you want to_ , he thought, _but don't endanger us in your stupidity_.

"What have they done?" Izayoi asked, aghast at the implications.

"Declared war," was the reply. "The war against the Demons."

Stormclouds were gathering thickly overhead, blotting out the sun and casting a horrible shadow over the land. The soldiers cheering was quickly drowned out by the rumble of thunder. The waters were starting to churn as well. Dark shapes slipped beneath them as Inuyasha and his family watched. Not fish... not even sharks. Something far, far worse was swimming underneath them. Again Inuyasha tightened his grip protectively on Sota, casting a glance over at his parents.

Then suddenly, darkness erupted out of the waters. Lesser demons of every shape and size, long tentacles and bat-like wings, gaping eyes and drooling mouths. They flew over the ship and then descended upon the soldiers en masse, biting and clawing and stinging. Shouts and cries replaced their cheers as they grabbed at weapons and fought for their lives.

"Let's get out of here," Inuyasha said, reaching for the ropes and gently pushing Sota over to the middle of the deck with his mother.

"No," the father commanded. "Do nothing."

His eyes did not leave the bloody display above, and Inuyasha lifted his own view to watch.

The soldiers did their best to battle but they were men trained to fight in formation, against other men, not unearthly creatures such as these. Many were bit or raked with poisoned fangs and claws, others were dragged screaming into the sky, only to be dropped onto the cold rocks below. Inuyasha could only watch in horror, aghast at the carnage. He wished he could help, but against such monsters as these, what could anyone hope to do?

Finally, the demons seemed to have finished off the soldiers, flitting through the air in chaotic patterns, ducking and weaving in and out amongst one another. As they did, they seemed to collide in the skies above. Melding and merging together, flowing into shadowy darkness until that darkness erupted outwards in a wave of ashes and dark flame. A man floated amidst those shadows, a man with a wicked look on his pale face.

 _No, not a man_ , Inuyasha realized. _A demon_.

The demon hurled himself forward, his body like a great meteor of shadows, and he smashed into their boat and tore it asunder in seconds. Inuyasha was knocked off his feet and sent flying through the air, only to crash into the water seconds later. He struck head first, so hard and fast he blacked out instantly. Darkness enfolded him as the cold waters and broken remains of their ship became the tomb for his family.

Inuyasha, however... lived...

* * *

Meanwhile, another battle raged, with words instead of weapons raised in heated conflict. High up atop of the mountains, in the Heavens, the Demon Lords had gathered to discuss this latest affront against them. Everyone seemed to be speaking at once, shouting to be heard. Snarls and roars of protest added to the layers of noise until almost nothing could be made out properly.

"Inutaisho, you must bring an end to this!"

"They attacked our temples!"

"Now they dared to disgrace Inutaisho's image!"

"They dare to mock us!"

"They must suffer for this!"

"We cannot act in haste!"

"We could reach out to them!"

"An accommodation could be made, a truce!"

" **NO!** "

Down came the great demon kings fist, smashing the arm of his throne. The sound echoed through the hallway of the other demon rulers, silencing them. Inutaisho spoke then. "I protected them. Nurtured them. Guided them. And they reward my love... our love... with defiance?! There will be no truce! **None**!" he barked.

"Finally, some rage from you."

A new voice slithered into the chambers, as all eyes went from their lord Inutaisho to the far end of the chamber, to a single spot shrouded in shadows. One rarely occupied by its owner, who stood before them now.

"How long has it been? How long brother? Since you've seen my face?" he asked, as the shadows faded to reveal him.

Clad in spiky bone armor, the new demon in their midst cut an imposing figure. Tall, dark-haired, pale of feature with inhuman red eyes and a wicked grin on his face. His features were noble and aristocratic, like all the gathered demons, but on this one they seemed pale and whitewashed as a corpse recently buried.

"Naraku," Inutaisho greeted warily.

The dark demon dipped his head. "Endless years, I've watched from the Underworld," he said. "I saw your wrath tempered with love. You aided them for one reason, so their prayers would fuel our power and our immortality."

That part they all knew. What was Naraku driving at?

"But you love them too well. They grow strong, and now, I am forced to rise because we are all threatened."

"What do you want, brother?" Inutaisho asked, hoping Naraku would get to the point.

"Let me loose upon them," Naraku demanded, stepping up in front of his elder brother. "To torment and destroy. They will pray again, and you will bathed in their awe and fear. And we will grow strong again."

Naturally, the idea was met with protest. Not because of what it was, but who was voicing it. "He belongs in the Underworld, not here," said Taigomaru.

"You do not tell me where I belong," Naraku countered smoothly, eyeing the bat demon with a terrible glare.

Choro, known as the Sea-Wolf, found himself nodding in agreement with his youngest sibling. "Inutaisho, our brother speaks the truth. Hear him."

That seemed to be enough to make up the great demon kings mind. "Go, do what you will."

One last feeble attempt was made to sway his decision, by the tiniest and most miniature amongst them. "My King, we need the mortals," Myoga said from his perch on Inutaisho's shoulder.

"No, Myoga," he smoothly replied. "Naraku is right. Their insolence must have a price. Like children, they need to be reminded of the order of things. Set an example brother."

His decree echoed through the Heavens as Inutasho made his will known.

"Turn them on each other."

* * *

 **Authors Notes:  
** Please leave a review if you enjoyed.

I am honestly shocked and appalled nobody has thought to do this before, it seemed like the most perfectly natural thing to me. At least, in the context of the Clash of the Titans remake in 2010. A smidgen of tweaking and it could well have been an Inuyasha live-action film. Much as I wish I could've presented this entire thing animated, hopefully this story will serve as a suitable substitute in the meantime. As it is, it's only a while before someone is liable to try and make a live action film series about Inuyasha anyway, given how many anime have been coming to the big screen in recent years.


	2. War is Declared

When Inuyasha finally regained consciousness, it was due to the rocking of the waves. He was dry again, the sun having warmed his body while he lay on the deck of the new ship. Not his families vessel. A military vessel, a war ship, bound for Edo. He flitted in and out of consciousness until finally it docked, and a soldier roughly shoved him.

"Up, you."

Grunted, Inuyasha rolled to his feet and climbed up, shaking off his lethargy. Without a backward glance he hopping off the ship before the gangplank had even been lowered. The fact that it was nearly a dozen feet down to the docks meant nothing to him. Once grounded, he got a better look at the city of Edo. It was magnificent, built into the rock face of the cove so that is stretched out and up for miles in every direction, seemingly shimmering just like gold as the sunlight hit it so. A marvel of modern architecture. The work of men.

Were his heart not so heavy with loss, Inuyasha might have been moved by the sight of it. As it was, he cared not in the slightest.

The crew of the ship quickly docked and lowered the plank, making way to join a contingent of armed soldiers marching to meet them. "Are we the last boat to come in?" asked the captain.

"No... the only one," the dockmaster replied.

He caught sight of Inuyasha then, barefoot and barely wearing more than a pair of functional pants, so unalike the soldiers in their glistening armor and sturdy shields.

"Is he one of ours?" asked the dockmaster, glancing over at Inuyasha.

"No, we found him on the banks amongst the dead. He was the only survivor."

"Let the palace decide what to do with him then," the dockmaster decided.

* * *

Given no choice in the matter, Inuyasha stumbled along like a man already dead, lead by the soldiers through the streets of Edo towards the palace. Along the way they saw the sights of the city, which had fallen on hard times. Glittering and golden from a distance, up close the truth was more evident. Edo was not quite the jewel it proclaimed itself to be. Once grand structures showed cracks and disrepair, and people once praised for being the center of Japan's cultural and spiritual center looked underfed and discontent. Merchants still selling their wares did so with virtually no enthusiasm, and given their quality, it was not hard to blame them.

On one street corner, a roughshod priest in rags and an unkept beard was preaching to anyone who would listen. His faith was readily evident by the string of black beads strung about his neck, a prayer necklace. He was rambling almost a mile a minute, though no one paid him the slightest heed.

"They gave us the corn in the fields, and the sun, and the moon, and the sky itself. These are all the gifts given to us. The gifts, they can't be taken away. Yet this will be taken away, if we do not pay faithfully to our demon lords. If you do not wish to stay in our filth and misery which we are brought upon ourselves..."

"Out of the way!" grumbled the soldier, finally having enough of his banter and shoving him aside. He went tumbling down, but even this would not silence his tongue.

"Man cannot rule man, you fight the demon lords and you will be punished!" he proclaimed loudly at their retreating backs.

They ignored him as they continued up towards the palace, the cornerstone of Edo, the castle where its royal family ruled over the people.

* * *

The double doors parted as the soldiers escorted Inuyasha into the opulent hallway, where people were already deep in their revels. So unlike the commoners below, the nobles here were sharing in the finest foods and drinks, wearing the most elegant of garments. It was an impressive display of wealth and prosperity.

Pity they didn't feel like sharing it.

"To the King and Queen!" someone called out, raising their glass in toast.

The King, an aged man with graying hair but a warm smile, accepted it with good humility, rising and raising his own glass. He smiled at the soldiers by the doorway.

"No... to _you_ , our mighty legion. Our heroes, who'd dared to strike a blow at the heart of Inutaisho!" he declared. Cheers greeted his words.

"The temples are burning, the statues have fallen. We have starved them of our prayers."

More cheers, and Inuyasha lifted his dull gaze as he spotted two women descending the staircase behind the King. The Queen and Princess, quite obviously. The former looked a bit worn, already deep in her cups and with a glazed look in her eyes, a smug grin on her lips. The Princess, however...

Inuyasha had never seen a more beautiful woman, with skin like marble and hair like sable. She wore a plain white robe with few adornments, though it's high quality was obvious even this far away, and she looked lovely enough that she could have worn rags and it would make virtually no difference. Her expression was one of concern and trepidation, not merriment. She seemed to have better sense than her mother and father.

"Tonight, after a generation of struggle, the sun does not set over the ocean. It sets on the Heavens themselves! A new era has begun. The era of Man!" the King proclaimed.

Wildly cheering nobles and soldiers alike greeted his statement, as the party-goers began to mingle and revel, ignoring the destruction outside their golden halls, ignoring the death of their many comrades and their commoners. This must have been exactly what the Heavens looked like, Inuyasha thought sourly. No one truly cared about the little people. They'd merely exchanged one evil for another.

The Queen evidently didn't agree, she was swept up in the moment, and mildly annoyed her daughter was not enjoying herself as well. Inuyasha could hear them all the way over from his spot by the doors, his ear twitching as he listened.

"That frown doesn't suit you Kagome. Have something to drink, you'll feel more lively," she suggested smugly.

Kagome took the glass of wine. But not for herself. Without a word she walked around the fountains and amongst the revelers, making her way past the soldiers to the strange man with them, with golden eyes and long white hair. The one with the dead look in his eyes.

"What is your name?" she asked gently, as she drew close.

"... Inuyasha," he finally replied, not quite looking her in the eyes.

"Drink this," she said. "You look as though you could use it."

Reluctantly, he started to take the chalice, but a strong hand struck him across the cheek, spilling the wine to the floor. It was Bankotsu, the soldier captain who'd brought him here. Evidently he did not like how close he was to the Princess.

"Hands off, boy!" he demanded.

"Enough!" Kagome protested. He backed away immediately.

"Our daughter, the missionary," her mother said in a tone only vaguely patronizing.

But rather than be pleased by the kind words, Kagome was insulted. She turned back to her family, eyes flashing with anger. "Have you seen what's happening out there? Have you even bothered to look?" she asked. "The destruction? The devastation?"

"We serve as an inspiration," the Queen replied haughtily.

"Hundreds of our men have lost their lives," Kagome went on, ignoring her. "Yet we celebrate. You are provoking the Demon Lords, and you act like there won't be no consequence."

Perhaps not all was lost, Inuyasha mused, if the Princess had more compassion than her mother and father. Not to mention more common sense. However, her words seemed to finally stir the Queen to a bit of annoyance, if not outright anger. "And what do you want? Should we be afraid? Should we be trembling and soiling ourselves in fear? The Demon Lords need us. They need our worship. What do we need from them?"

Only silence greeted her statement, everyone in the hall had grown deathly quiet, afraid to interrupt the Queen's speech. Even Kagome had finished speaking, if only for the moment.

The Queen took this as a good sign, a smile gracing her lips as she sought to make a point. "Look upon my daughter," she commanded.

"Don't," Kagome protested, knowing well enough what was coming and determined to avoid it.

Her mother ignored her. "What could be more divine than her face? More beautiful than all the women of Japan, more beautiful than Midoriko herself. The demons should envy _her_."

Privately, Inuyasha was inclined to agree, but the way this was being done felt wrong to him. He openly glared as the Queen continued to praise her daughter's physical beauty like she was something to be worshipped. She was growing positively drunk now, and not simply with wine. The power was growing straight to her head, leading to her most damning blasphemy of all.

"We are the only rulers needed now!"

Her husband tried to rein her in, speaking private words to her... but it was far, far too late.

A hushed silence fell over the hall as a chill spread through the air. Shadows flickered across the lit braziers, turning the light cold and dark. Inuyasha tensed, recognizing this feeling. It was the same he'd felt when his boat had been attacked and his family killed.

He was not terribly surprised then when the darkness slithered over the soldiers standing beside him, washing over them like a dark miasma, turning flesh to ash and letting skeletal remains clatter to the ground still in their fancy armor. In the end, only Inuyasha was left standing on the threshold, though he could not say how or why. The darkness slid through the air to pool in the center of the room, like the demons had in the air over his boat early that same day, and the dread lord Naraku materialized out of the darkness.

It seemed for a moment as if the dread Lord of the Underworld looked directly at Inuyasha... and paused.

"Interesting."

Seeing that hated face, Inuyasha gave a roar, charging forward with clawed hands upraised to rip Naraku to pieces. The demon lord scarcely paid him any mind as he backhanded Inuyasha aside with his bare hand, smashing him into a column and sending him crashing to the ground. Then his attention turned to the royal family, drifting through the air towards them.

"My queen... what interesting words reach my ears... you proclaim yourselves rulers? I think not," Naraku whispered, his voice cold as death. Wherever he tread, there was death and destruction, columns crumbled, food withered and dried up, water turned brackish and poisoned. Such was the power of the Underworld's ruler. The master of death and worse than death.

"You are little better than specks of dust beneath our feet. Your every breath is a gift from the Heavens," he proclaimed, turning to regard the others gathered. "You have insulted the powers that be beyond comprehension."

"Who are you?" demanded the Queen.

He proclaimed it for one and all to hear. "I am Naraku."

"Lord Naraku!"

"The Damned King!"

"Lord of the Underworld!"

"Dreaded Naraku is here!"

With a gesture, the red-eyed demon lord gave a command to his captive audience. "Kneel."

They had no choice but to obey, the blood freezing in their veins as they fell to their knees before the greater power of darkness and death, unable to stop themselves.

Unable to believe what sheep they were being, Inuyasha reached for a weapon to continue his attack, but a pale hand wrapped over his, halting him.

"Not now Inuyasha, you will have your chance," whispered a female voice. Trusting it on an instinctive level, Inuyasha did as he was bade, though he continued to glare up at Naraku as the dark demon continued to torment the gathered mortals. Naraku leaned in very close to the Queen, as if about to steal a kiss from her lips, but what he promised was far more terrible.

"What do you know of beauty? What is more beautiful than death?" his fingers brushed almost lovingly against her chin, tilting her head up. "Gaze upon me mortal queen."

As his hand withdrew, his curse took effect, and in seconds death was upon the queen. Her face withered and aged in seconds. Her luxurious hair turning gray, then white, as her bones became brittle and her limbs feeble. Within minutes she was an elderly crone, and seconds later after that she was little more than blackened bones, which clattered against the ground as they crumbled into so much dust.

"MOTHER!" cried Kagome.

"Stay where you are!" commanded the King, not wishing his daughter to be destroyed as well. Fortunately, the captain of the guard had grabbed the Princess before she could get too close.

Satisfied no one was going to interrupt, Naraku turned his cold, red gaze upon the gathered humans. Disgusting insects that they were, they nourished him far more than any banquet ever could. He drank in their fear and their hatred, feeling it fuel his spirit as he gave them his brothers ultimatum.

"In ten days, when the sun is eclipsed," proclaimed Naraku. "I will unleash Ryukoytsei upon you. Edo will be swept from the Earth, and all of you with it."

Terrible enough a fate, but it seemed the Lord of the Underworld was not yet done with his torment. "Unless... you sacrifice the princess, you who so foolishly compared her to the demon lords. Only her blood will sate Ryukoytsei... and Inutaisho, whom you have so offended."

Gathering the shadows and darkness to himself, Naraku rose up into the air, displaying the full might of a demon lord as hellish flames licked his bony armor. Others flinched away from the inhuman heat, save for Inuyasha, who scarcely felt it.

"Choose your penance Edo, destruction or sacrifice. This is the will of Inutaisho..." he finished... then paused, glancing over at Inuyasha, the only one in the room still standing apart from Naraku. "The will of _your father_ ," declared Naraku. And with that, he vanished in a puff of dark smoke, cinders floating through the air as he returned to the Underworld once more.

But his words remained, as did the fear they evoked in the hearts of men. The citizens of Edo were terrified.

Just as he had planned.

* * *

"My lord... there is a hanyou in Edo."

The Heavens were emptier than before, the demon lords having departed to their own various dwellings, leaving Inutaisho alone to ponder the fate of the mortals and his fellow demon lords. The long silence was interrupted by his vassal, the Demon Messenger, Myoga.

A frown creased the elder demon's face. "Another...?" he asked.

"He's yours," Myoga went on. "They say his name is Inuyasha."

Inuyasha. A good name, the King of the Heavens decided.

"We could grant him sanctuary here," Myoga ventured. But his proposition was doomed the moment he mentioned it. The frown only grew deeper.

"Have I heard his prayers?" Inutaisho asked, knowing full well the answer. "Has he called to me? This son of mine knows no love for me, or any of us. He is no different from the others who have turned their backs on us."

And that was quite the long list indeed. Starting with Jinenji and Shiori and ending recently with Choro's brat, Koga. Very few ever truly embraced their demonic heritage. Most instinctively fought it. The human in their blood gave rise to great defiance, while the demon made them strong. A dangerous combination to be sure. Hanyou sometimes had a place here in the Heavens, but it seemed that Inuyasha did not. He would die with the humans. Some sacrifices for the greater good would have to be made.

* * *

"Speak!" they commanded. "Who are you? Why were you sent here?!"

"I don't know," Inuyasha rasped out, barely able to breathe. Honestly, if they wanted him to talk, trying to choke him wasn't going to make it very easy. Neither was being punched in the gut, which is what Bankotsu did next. Knocking the air out of his lungs meant he had none to spare on words. Though that attack had seemed more out of anger than anything else, because now they were going for the hot pokers and the branding irons. Inuyasha growled, struggling to break free, but strong as he was, there were at least six on him, and his arms were shackled.

He was about to receive some very nasty scars when he heard his salvation coming scurrying down the steps into the dungeons, a pair of men. One the King himself, another a closely trusted advisor, even now doing his job in attempting to counsel the King's decision. A poor one, in his opinion.

"I must advise against this, sire, he's not to be trusted!" hissed the advisor.

"What would you have me do?!" demanded the King, positively beside himself with worry. "Up! Let him up, now!"

Reluctantly though they were to let Inuyasha escape his torment, Bankotsu recognized an order when given one, hauling up the white-haired hanyou and throwing him up against a nearby wall, ensuring he was properly restrained. Just because they wouldn't keep hurting him didn't mean they were going to let him run loose. Especially with Edo's ruler in the room.

Rulers, he corrected himself, noticing Princess Kagome entering as well.

"Let him go," the King declared. The guards let loose the shackles, and Inuyasha slumped wearily against the wall, exhausted but thankfully undamaged.

The King seemed to think the same, gazing at Inuyasha with undisguised awe. "Is it possible?" he whispered. "If it's true... then you are the son of Inutaisho. You can save us."

Inuyasha looked back at him, noticing the desperate look in his eyes. The eyes of a man doomed. Slowly, he shook his head. He couldn't save them, he was just a fisherman.

"You MUST save us."

"I can't save you..." he replied. "I'm just one man."

With those words, the King deflated, all the air escaping his lungs as his hopes were supremely dashed by the imprisoned hanyou. Sensing an opportunity to make the will of the people known, his advisor again tried to approach things from a practical standpoint.

"My lord... as terrible as it is... a sacrifice may be the only way..."

Inuyasha managed a weak chuckle at that. Did they really think it would end with one? The demon lords would be back for more, and they'd keep demanding more and more, just like they always had. One sacrifice would become twelve, then hundreds. As long as mankind kept capitulating like sheep they were doomed.

"They're right," Kagome said, speaking up. "No one should have to die for me. Let Inuyasha go."

Blinking golden eyes in puzzlement, Inuyasha realized he hadn't misheard that. After all that had just happened, she was willing to die for her city, just like that? And she was insisting he be let go as well? Princess Kagome was something else entirely, Inuyasha saw. Perhaps she was worthy of worship after all.

"Sire," Bankotsu interrupted. "We need to get the princess out of the city. We'll find a place to hide her."

"You can't hide from Naraku," Inuyasha said wearily, knowing full well it to be true.

"So says the bastard son of a _demon_ ," Bankotsu growled. Inuyasha growled right back, hackles rising as he squeezed his fists tightly, feeling his nails dig into his palms.

"My father was killed by a demon. My mother, my brother... everything I loved died by Naraku's hand," Inuyasha growled. "But there's no way to fight them. And I can't be what you want me to be. I'm just a fishermen. I mend nets. Not wield the sword."

Faced with no other choice, the King decreed Inuyasha was to be locked up in the dungeons, a captive their war against the demon lords. Clearly, no one believed him about being no son of Inutaisho. Even Inuyasha was starting to have fearful doubts. Was this who he truly was? Something he despised with all of his heart?

He did not know... but the questions gnawed at his heart.

* * *

 **Authors Notes:  
** Originally, Kikyo was conceived as the Princess Andromeda due to her lack of involvement in the story, and Kagome was the Io of the film, a woman with odd temporal stature (Io being _frozen_ in time, Kagome being _displaced_ from time) and a close connection/romance with the main character. A later decision had their roles reversed, for reasons you can no doubt guess later on. But really, given how similar the girls are, its relatively easy to interchange them anyway.

Originally conceived several characters for the role of the mad zealot, including Bankotsu and Jaken, but ultimately found them different roles and could not think of anyone else suitable. Alas, their role wasn't that important (they never even got named, after all) so they were skipped over.


	3. Dark Revelations

He may have been in that cell for hours, possibly even a full day, he wasn't sure. The window offered only a minimum of light, and the skies were overcast. None the less, after some time had passed, the captain of the guard, Bankotsu, returned to see him.

"Hey demonspawn... you have a visitor. She says she knows you."

Raising himself to his feet, Inuyasha watched as a pale lady entered the cell, drawing back her hood to expose her features. For a moment, he thought it the Princess, and there was a striking similarity between the two dark-haired, fair featured women. So alike they could have been twins. But this one's expression was cold and collected, her eyes a darker shade of brown, and her lips pale and bloodless, drawn into a thin line as she beheld him.

"My name is Kikyo, Inuyasha."

Her familiarity with his name gave him pause. "How do you know me?" he asked, not recognizing her at all.

"I watched you all your life. I guided you to your family," she explained calmly, her dark eyes seeming to pierce right through his and into his very soul.

She didn't look that old. If she'd known him all his life... "Are you a demon?"

The dark-haired woman shook her head, loosening her robes as she spoke. "There are demons, there are humans, and there are those in-between. But I am something entirely different. Years ago I refused a demon's advances... he slew me," she added, lowering the back of her robes and showing her shoulders. Three jagged marks cut from her shoulder across her back. Given their size, it was easy enough to guess they were a death blow. Yet they'd healed.

"You look remarkably good for a dead woman."

Kikyo tugged up her robe and turned to face him, her gaze cold. "I was returned to the world of the living, but not to life. I am cursed. Unable to age, watching those I care for die while I remain." There was a brief pause. "I imagine you're sympathetic in that regard."

The loss of his family. Inuyasha stilled, the wound in his heart did indeed still sting.

"Is it true?" he finally asked. "Am I the son of Inutaisho?"

She gave a simple nod, and he felt his soul wither. It was true then.

"The story of your birth began with the rebellion of King Takemaru. Mankind had grown tired of the demon lords cruelty. Takemaru wanted to lay siege to the Heavens themselves. It is said the other demon lords wanted to simply lay waste to the King and his army."

"But Inutaisho felt there would be a better way. At first, he intended to end the line of Kings, but when he saw the Queen... your mother... he fell for her almost immediately. Disguised as the King, Inutaisho visited her chambers where she lay sleeping. After a single night of passion, she conceived a son. Nine months later, Takemaru returned, and confronted the demon lord as he revealed himself. Mad with rage, the King ordered the execution of his wife and the newborn boy, casting them both into the sea."

Inuyasha slumped against the far wall, reeling from the revelation. Never, in the countless years he wondered, had he ever imagined anything like this.

Kikyo evidently wasn't finished either. "Your mother perished, but you... half-human, and half-demon... survived. They call your kind hanyou. I have been watching over you ever since. Awaiting the day you'll help to bring an end to the demon's tyranny."

"An end...?"

"You were born to kill Ryukoytsei," Kikyo explained.

It was a lot to take in, and Inuyasha was stubborn and thick-headed, just like his old man had been. "I don't know why I was born," he growled. "Or what I am. But I know it's not Ryukoytsei I wanna kill."

She raised an eyebrow at his tone.

"How do I get to Naraku?" he snarled, turning back to her. Unperturbed by his anger, the undead woman explained.

"If Ryukoytsei falls, Naraku will be weakened," Kikyo explained. "The two are bound deeper than blood and bone. You will be able to strike a deathly blow, but only after the dragon has fallen."

Inuyasha lifted his gaze, his golden eyes hard as metal. "Well then... they better release me."

* * *

While Inuyasha was being released and armed, Kikyo walked the hallway with Bankotsu, outlining her plan. Fate and fortune had brought them together but she had spent decades if not centuries planning things as well, not trusting to mere Fate to see things through.

"If Ryukoytsei can be killed, the Dark Witch will know how," she said as they walked along.

"The witch lives further away than any legion has ever been," Bankotsu said. "No man can go there."

Kikyo agreed. "No _man_ can go there."

He glared at her, but conceded her point. And with orders from his own liege lord making it official, he had no choice. Inuyasha had to come, and Kikyo as well. But that damn well didn't mean that Bankotsu had to like it. If the life of the Princess wasn't at stake, he'd be quick to tell them both to rot in the Underworld. As it was... they could only press onwards.

* * *

In the armory, warriors were preparing for battle, though these were not exactly your conventional warriors. With so many already dead or wounded by their war against the demons, they could only afford to send a few along on what many were considering a suicidal mission.

One of them, a young man with dark hair and a kindly face, sat in the midst of all the preparations, praying feverishly for salvation, the beads clinking as he recited the words over and over again. "Inutaisho, forgive us for these affronts and protect us. King of the Heavens, we are deeply sorry for our sins..."

Another of the soldiers, an effeminate looking fellow in women's make-up, swatted the beads out of his hand.

"Suikotsu, you are _embarrassing_ us," Jakotsu said.

Bankotsu strode through the hall at that moment, tugging on his breastplate and straightening his robes. One glance told him everything he needed to know, even as he glare over at the man who was praying. Then his hard gaze flicked over to the demon spawn hanyou who was getting them into this whole mess. "This is who you're getting thrown into this madness, Inuyasha. A whole guard, in your honor. Young men who look good on review, and old soldiers who should've retired years ago."

One of the veterans, a heavyset brute with flaming red hair, actually had the gall to laugh at that.

"We number no more than seven. Eight, with you."

Seeing the white-haired half-demon wasn't paying attention, or at least trying to ignore him, Bankotsu decided to spell it out for him.

"Do you even know what Ryukoytsei is?"

Finally, Inuyasha raised his head, and shook it slowly. He could sense he was being challenged, but now was not the time for a fight.

"Ryukoytsei is the End of Everything," Bankotsu said. "A colossal... elemental... dragon that lays waste to all it beholds. It doesn't think, it doesn't feel. Even the greatest of the demon lords fear it and you... you're going to kill it?" He didn't bother to keep the incredulous, unbelieving tone out of his voice.

Inuyasha snarled. "Don't come then. I can do this myself."

The smirk on the tanned soldiers face didn't help. "Of course you can. You're the son of Inutaisho, aren't you?"

 _Fates give me strength_ , Inuyasha thought, it was getting hard not to tear this arrogant man's throat out.

"Gentlemen!" announced one of the old soldiers merrily, a stout, squad little man in white robes. "May our journey be long... filled with agony and torment... and maybe all complain about as bitterly as old man."

This display only made Inuyasha raise an eyebrow in disbelief. Still, at least someone seemed to be enjoying himself.

"So what do we bring?" asked another soldier, standing up after securing his heavy armor.

"Bring everything," Mukotsu suggested, already picking up a staff and testing its weight.

Nor was he the only one. Shields were brought down, swords examined and sheathed, spears hefted, bows plucked and arrows quivered. No weapon or armorment was left behind. All possible tools were being made use of here, which led to another moment of animosity between Inuyasha and Bankotsu, as the latter threw a bundle of red cloth at the former's face.

"Wear that. It's a gift from the king. Evidently he doesn't want you dying on us too soon."

Inuyasha unfolded the red, puzzled at it. It didn't look like much, just some red robes. Yet a simply tug of his hands revealed it was, in fact, quite strong. "What is it?"

"It's made from fur of the fire rat," Bamkotsu said, hefting his huge sword over his shoulder. If he'd hung it from his hip it would've dragged against the ground. "It'll protect you."

"You wear it then!" Inuyasha retorted.

"Not my color," the soldier replied glibly.

Growling, the white-haired hanyou reluctantly pulled on the robes, finding they did fit surprisingly well. Comfortably, even. As he finished dressing, one of the seven soldiers ventured a question that had been bugging him about their mission.

"What makes you think the witch will tell us anything?" she asked.

"Well, if she doesn't, I'll just kill her too," Inuyasha decided.

* * *

By the time they were armed and on the move, Inuyasha's "honor brigade" or "band of seven" was being over-run by a mob of people. Evidently they felt they were being abandoned, and determined not to let the military flee while they were forced to remain behind and suffer the 'tender mercies' of the Demon Lords.

"Do not leave us to the mercy of the demons, please!"

"Do not go, please stay!"

"Stay here, please!"

"Please! Help us!"

"Just sacrifice the princess!"

"Watch your mouth!" growled Bankotsu, shoving the man in question out of the way. If he hadn't, Inuyasha would have.

"Stay back! Stay back!" growled the biggest soldier, Kyokotsu, keeping them at bay with his intimidating size.

"You'd think they'd be more grateful," Jakotsu lamented.

His words struck a chord with the hanyou. "Maybe they are tired of being thankful," Inuyasha remarked bitterly, thinking of his father's and one of his last phrases uttered. He knew he was starting to get damned tired of the demons interference.

"Good news!" someone called out. The crowd parted to reveal who it was as they stepped closer to the honor guard. A boy, not much older than fourteen or so, accompanied by an older girl who must have been his sister, so alike were their features. She carried a boomerang almost half again her height slung over shoulder, while he wore a chain and sickle coiled up at his hip.

"My brother and I have decided to accompany you on your journey," she said.

Bankotsu wasn't in the mood. "We have enough strangers here."

"We can be of great help to you," the young man protested. "Trust us."

"You'll need us," the young woman added.

"I need soldiers, not hunters," Bankotsu said.

The younger sibling took that as a challenge. "Oh? And which one of your soldier knows how to cut the impenetrable hide of the oyster demon? Which one of them knows the soft point on a thunder siblings armor? Which one of them knows which jugular to slice on a five-headed hydra?

"The middle one?" ventured Jakotsu.

Kohaku nodded, recognizing the guess for what it was. "The middle one. A good guess."

"My brother and I, we know how to kill," Sango declared, daring them to challenge their ability again. "We enjoy it."

Bankotsu rolled his eyes, but he couldn't exactly turn down free help. "If you can keep up, you don't mind dying... why the hell not?"

The girl smirked. "It is _death_ who should be afraid of _us_."

"What're your names?" Inuyasha asked, as they travelled to the gates.

"Sango," the sister said. "And this is Kohaku."

The unlikely collection of soldiers, killers, hunters and a hanyou walked down the streets as the crowds continued to watch with skepticism and fear. But one gaze in particular followed them right up to the city gates. The same priest who had met them on their arrival, who proclaimed the demon lords were in the right in this war. The same one who now sought to rectify the sins of his city and make things right with their demonic rulers.

Even if it meant the sacrifice of an innocent.

* * *

The party travelled north, across sand and open wastes, through trackless forests and over great hills, towards the blackened lands of the Dark Witch and hopefully, answers.

They had less than ten days to get there. Time was in short supply.

* * *

In darkness and gloom, surrounded by the roots of an ancient tree, a single figure hid in his cave far below the tall walls of Edo. A shroud hung over his head, a vain effort to hide some of his hideous features. His left arm hung uselessly at his side, the fingers melted and warped like a candle left too long under the flame. Even his face was ravaged, distorted by old scars that would never heal.

This was Takemaru, formerly a king among men, now nothing but a monster hiding in the darkness. He had been here ever since that fateful night. He would never forget that hateful night. That horrible nightmare of a night.

 _Thrusting the doors of his chambers wide open, Takemaru beheld the horrible sight of his wife, laying naked in her bed, heavily pregnant, and with a man with her who was not himself. More horrible was the look on the man's face. His face. As it warped and twisted to reveal the truth behind the illusion, that Inutaisho had been in his chambers, had laid with his wife._

 _She looked equally shocked, so pale she appeared ready to faint at any moment as she gazed up at the demon lord in horror._

 _For his part, the King of the Heavens growled, throwing himself bodily out the door and into the night sky. As he did, his body changed again, taking the form of a white-furred dog nearly twenty stories tall, bounding across the rooftops of his kingdom and back to his castle in the Heavens._

 _Enraged beyond any measure of control, Takemaru drew his sword, barking orders at his men, ordering that the demon child be destroyed, and its soiled mother with it. His wife was good as dead to him, he ignored her frantic cries for mercy and pity as she was locked in a casket and dragged to the sea. Storm clouds swirled overhead as thunder boomed in the distance, and Takemaru roared up at the Heavens themselves._

" _I curse you Inutaisho!" he shouted, sword raised in the sky. "I deny you the body you soiled and the bastard child with it!"_

 _Rain splashed down all around him as Takemaru shouted his curses. Inutaisho did not take the insult lightly, as a bolt of lightning split the skies, striking his upraised sword and travelling along it to ravage Takemaru's body, savagely striking half of his face and ruining his arm. The metal was almost fused with his bones as he cried out in agony._

 _Even so, he would not accept aid, not even from his own soldiers. He waved them off savagely as he stayed on his feet, fueled by fury alone. With a single good arm he picked up the casket holding the demon lord's son and his wife and hurled them off the cliff and into the dark ocean depths below._

That was when it had all ended. With his queen gone, the royal line was ended. His city had fallen into ruin, his land claimed by other kingdoms, his people by other rulers. He had nothing left now but his pain... and his wrath.

"King Takemaru?"

The many candles of the chamber flickered as the voice slithered out of the darkness. The same darkness filled the cavern before it coalesced into the form of Naraku. Ordinary men, fearful men, might have been startled. The shrouded man didn't even bother to turn around.

"I'm no king," replied the scarred man with one good hand. "It's just Takemaru now."

"We have an enemy in common," whispered Naraku, slithering out of the gloom. "Inutaisho. My brother."

If the Demon Lord was hoping for a reaction, he was sorely disappointed. The fallen king turned to glare at the demon Lord of the Underworld, uninterested. "What do you want from me?"

"Inutaisho's seed in your wife, survived," Naraku explained. "The child of your shame. His name... is Inuyasha."

 _That_ got a reaction. The former king growled at the very idea of it. "He lives?"

"You murdered your wife for nothing," the red-eyed demon lord said. "Now, Inuyasha vows himself from Edo to destroy me. He must die.

"What would you have me do?" asked Takemaru, gesturing with his useless hand to emphasis his lack of usefulness.

Naraku chose his next words carefully. He detested alliances, and revealing little of himself in the process, but in this case, he needed Takemaru's assistance to act where he could not. "Inutaisho must think I serve him still, but... I am growing stronger. Until I possess my full power, you will be my weapon. And this will be yours."

Holding out his hands, Naraku passed them over thin air, and conjured the weapon out of the very void itself. A straight, double-edged instrument of murder with a short hilt of blood red.

"Like Ryukoytsei, forged from a demon of my own flesh. It is called Tokijin... and it will serve you well."

Takemaru edged closer, eyeing the blade curiously. It did indeed look like it could slay any man... or half-man.

"Kill Inuyasha for me... and I shall destroy Inutaisho for you," Naraku promised.

With such a choice, Takemaru was all too eager to accept, taking the weapon. "The boy will die."

As his hand closed around the hilt, the blade pulsed, throbbing with demonic life. Tendrils erupted from the hilt to bury themselves in Takemaru's arm, and he growled in pain, refusing to cry out despite his intense agony. The tendrils dug deep into his arm, tightening, until the blade would be a part of it. As they burrowed deeper, a change came over Takemaru, purple splotches staining his scarred skin as his eyes became yellow and hellish, with reddish pupils. A great horn erupted from his right brow as demonic energy flowed into him.

The deal was struck. The bargain made.

* * *

 **Authors Notes:  
** One of many reasons I felt the story of Perseus (at least in the 2010 Film) so closely reflected Inuyasha was because of the inclusion of his mortal fathers and how one became a bitter enemy, the same way Takemaru did something similar in the Third Inuyasha movie. Had some vague plans to make Sesshoumaru his enemy (Calibos) instead, keeping the family hatred but giving the brothers a chance to clash, but those were scrapped due to later developments.


	4. Gifts and Traps

Travelling by foot wasn't the quickest means, but over the terrain they travelled it was the most practical. Thick roots and rocky grounds sought to slow their progress, as Inuyasha and the others continued north to find the Dark Witch and, hopefully, some answers on how Ryukoytsei could be defeated. It was not easy going. Sleeping on roots and rocks, being jostled by soldiers and teased and ridiculed for not knowing how to soldier on the way they did. Inuyasha was a frequent target of their light-hearted torment. But he put up with their jostling and their rough-housing. In an odd way, it seemed to mean they were welcoming him as part of their little band.

The only exception was their captain, Bankotsu.

He never let Inuyasha out of his sight, and whenever the white-haired hanyou turned to look, he seemed to be glaring his way. He hated him, Inuyasha realized. What he was, what he represented.

Well, the feeling was mutual, Inuyasha thought with a snarl.

And then there was Kikyo. Always following at a fair distance, never close enough to trouble them, yet equally never out of Inuyasha's sight. She never joined their campfires, never spoke a word, only watched from afar with her gaze that saw far too much. It was unnerving, yet at the same time comforting to know she watched over them as they ventured ever deeper into danger and the unknown.

* * *

Inuyasha plopped down the fish he'd caught in the river, tossing it down by the fire. It was a mighty haul indeed, nearly three hand spans long.

"You really are a fisherman," Sango said with a grin, grateful to have a meal.

"You should've seen my father," Inuyasha replied, already working to skin and gut his catch.

But Bankotsu, evidently, would have none of this friendly little dinner. There was work to be done. "Inuyasha... bring your weapon," he said, inclining in his head over to a nearby clearing. His tone brooked no argument, but the hanyou growled all the same as he did as he was bade. Kohaku eagerly snatched up the fish and continued his work preparing it while Inuyashsa belted on his sword and stood before Bankotsu.

"Have you ever handled a sword before?" Bankotsu asked, picking up one of his fellow's blades, not the big, unsightly thing he'd been seen handling earlier.

"Never needed to," Inuyasha replied.

"Left foot forward," he instructed.

Inuyasha followed his instructions. The stance felt... natural, somehow.

"Your motions should be fluid..." Bankotsu explained, demonstrating as he spoke. "The weapon... is a part of you. Like the stinger on a scorpion. Stay focused. Know what surrounds you. Keep your balance at all times. If you fall..." he punctuated this last lesson with a sweeping foot, knocking Inuyasha on his back. "... you die."

Snarling, the white-haired hanyou climbed back to his feet. The other soldiers and hunters were laughing at his performance, which pushed him to fight better. And it was a damn good thing too, because Bankotsu's next blow would've taken his head off if he hadn't blocked. The air came alive with the clang-clang of metal on metal, the two of them striking and parrying with dizzying speed. For his part, instinct quickly seized hold of Inuyasha's arms and legs, carrying him through the strikes until the sword swung in his hand as easily as it did in Bankotsu's, blocking and parrying every last blow.

Catching one strike meant to sever his head from his shoulders, Inuyasha knocked the sword aside with enough force to send the blade out of Bankotsu's hands, burying it up to the hilt in a tree nearby. Snarling, he moved to finish off the arrogant captain... then paused... and realized what he was doing. He looked at the sword in his hand like it was a serpent ready to strike.

Bankotsu, however, seemed pleased with his performance, despite how close the tip was to his throat. He pushed it away easily. "There's definitely demon blood in you. Good. Be sure to bring it," he remarked, taking back the weapon from Inuyasha and sheathing the blade. "End of lesson.

Inuyasha could only glare at his retreating back, wishing desperately he could bury a sword up to the hilt in it. But Bankotsu knew what he was doing, and Inuyasha barely had a clue. They needed his leadership if they hoped to finish the mission.

Didn't mean he had to like it.

* * *

The next day, Inuyasha greeted the dawn early, unable to sleep well. Bad dreams continued to prey at his mind. Wandering afar in search of food for his comrades, he stumbled into a forest glade. In the center of which was a strange glow. Curious, he tried to find the source. As he approached closer, Inuyasha saw the glow was centered on a sword jammed into the earth tip first.

It looked like a beat up piece of junk, impossibly old, yet it glowed with impossible brilliant light. Reaching down, Inuyasha picked it up, and watched in awe as the blade transformed in his grasp, growing many times in size and impossibly sharp, curved like the fang of a great beast, yet weighing no more than a feather. He gave it a gentle swing, finding it well balanced despite its size. He could lift it with a single hand alone.

"A gift," Bankotsu said, stepping out from behind the nearby tree. He'd been following Inuyasha again. "Forged in the Heavens."

"Why?" asked the hanyou, unable to comprehend their reasoning. Were the demon lords trying to aid him? Some of them, at least?

"Just accept it," Bankotsu advised.

Inuyasha shook his head, wanting nothing to do with the demon lords that had caused him and his family such grief. "I can do this as a man. The sword is yours." He tossed it casually to Banktosu, who easily caught it by the hilt. As he did, the luster faded and the enormous blade faded away like dew in the morning light, leaving behind only a broken, rusty blade that you couldn't kill a mouse with.

Shaking his head at his cities savior and his stubbornness, Bankotsu took the broken blade with him. Like Inuyasha, he didn't like it, but they were going to need it before this was over. His instincts told him so, and he'd been a soldier far too long to ignore his instincts.

* * *

Unable to bear the company of the soldiers at the moment, Inuyasha went in search of Kikyo, whom he could at least trust to be... well, maybe non-judgmental wasn't the right word, since she still had the delusion he was some kind of savior of mankind. But if nothing else she was more... approachable.

She was relatively easy to find. The scent of death followed her everywhere.

He found her in a nearby clearing, approaching a tiny two-tailed white cat with black markings. It mewed up at her as Inuyasha watched, smirking. Who would have guessed the priestess could have such a connection with small animals?

But if that sight caused him some disbelief, the next thing he saw truly astonished him.

The tiny cat burst into flame, making Inuyasha recoil in shock... then charge forward to pull Kikyo from the conflagration... only to see her standing calmly as the flames dissipated, revealing the cat once more. Only it had grown. What once had been no bigger than a common housecat now towered bigger than any mountain lion Inuyasha had ever seen or heard of. Bigger than a horse, even, with shaggy white fur and sabertoothed fangs that were bigger than knives. It looked positively feral, yet Kikyo showed absolutely no fear of it.

"What... is it?" he asked, approaching slowly. The great beast seemed to growl, but then Inuyasha realized it was purring as Kikyo stroked under its great chin.

"Kirara," the dark-haired woman replied. "One of the very last of the Great Demon Cats. They say no man has ever ridden her."

Inuyasha could well believe it, though he'd be lying if he didn't want to try. He dared to look the great cat right in her eye, and saw something. Something fierce and untamable. And he felt a kinship there.

"It's a message... they're watching us," Kikyo said, flicking her gaze skywards. The Demon Lords. Instantly Inuyasha was wary again, backing away from Kirara. Another gift... and another trap. He didn't need their pity. He could manage well enough on his own.

"Help!"

Head snapping up at the cry, Inuyasha recognized it dimly as one of the soldiers in their band, calling for aid. They were under attack. He drew his sword and was in motion in seconds, even as Kirara ignited her paws and leapt into the air, galloping across the open sky and into the distance. Kikyo sighed, sensing trouble afoot, and followed Inuyasha at a calm, sedate pace. Hers was not to battle, but to guide.

Although she sense before this was over, she would have to let Inuyasha find his own path.

* * *

Inuyasha sprinted through the trees like a red-shaped blur, feet pounding, arms at his sides. Finally, he caught sight of the soldier in question. The youngest of their group, Suikotsu, who'd only just been made a soldier. He looked terrified, though of what Inuyasha could not see.

"Help me!"

Those were his final words as something huge and hideous pounced, and tore the poor soldier in two. Suikotsu did not even have enough time to scream before he was ripped in half horizontally.

Inuyasha skidded to a halt as the _thing_ that had done it turned to face him. It looked almost like a man, but misshapen and wicked, bearing a single curved horn on its right brow and cold yellow eyes. It was dressed in some sort of red armor, and held a wicked sword tightly in his hand. But that was not what caused his blood to chill, his heart to stop in terror. No, it was what the beast said next.

"You reek of your _father_ s stench!" snarled the horned visage. For it was Takemaru, the former King and now servant of Naraku.

Before Inuyasha could react, the snarling monster came charging at him, his boot slamming into the hanyous gut and knocking him off the ridge where they stood, sending him tumbling down the hill. Takemaru wasted no time in pursing, charging down the hill as if it was a gentle slope instead of a near vertical drop, howling like a madman.

He landed with enough force to send rocks flying everywhere, burying his blade in the ground, but thankfully Inuyasha had rolled out of the way seconds before he could be impaled to the earth like some sort of butterfly.

Inuyasha went for his own sword, but Takemaru swatted it out of his hands like it was nothing, then grabbed his wrist. Without warning the possessed man bared his jaws and sunk his vicious teeth into Inuyasha's wrist, nearly tearing his hand entirely off.

By now the other soldiers had finally reached them, and Inuyasha yanked his hand free as arrows peppered Takemaru's back, not even making him flinch. He spat hanyou blood from his mouth as he turned to face his new attackers.

Bankotsu swung his mighty sword in a wide arc, cleaving through a tree and intent to cut Takemaru in half, but the mighty beast blocked with Tokijin and the blow bounced off like the captain had struck a mountain. Takemaru wasted no time in making a counter attack, lashing out at Kyokotsu as the taller man tried to fend off his blows with his great sword.

Mukotsu threw down some gas pellets, hoping to blind the beastly man or throw him off guard as Ginkotsu and Kyokotsu charged it. Renkotsu continued to try and impale it with arrows but the beast man knocked them out of the sky with his sword, grabbing Kyokotsu by the wrist before his own blade could hit, then using him to knock Ginoktsu away, sending them both crashing to the ground. A lashing whip blade cut over Takemaru's head as he ducked Jakotsu's followed up attack, but it seemed that enough of them were forcing him to fight on the defensive, but he quickly swatted the whip sword out of the sky, kicked over Ginkotsu and then grabbed up Inuyasha by his head. His hand squeezed, applying intense pressure, clearly intent to cave in the hanyou's skull.

He didn't get that chance.

A three foot long blade swung through the air, hitting him right at the wrist, severing his rotten hand from his foul body as Takemaru faltered. The other soldiers converged on him to finish him off, but if hoping to find him weakened by his lost limb, they found themselves woefully wrong. Takemaru shrugged off their attacks and then roared like a lion, making them all cringe back fearfully.

Then, abruptly, he turned on his heel and took off.

"Who the hell was that?" Jakotsu asked, jogging up to Inuyasha's side.

"I dunno... let's go ask him," growled Inuyasha, his voice promising pain.

Unnoticed by all, the dismembered hand laying on the ground behind them began to twitch and writhe.

* * *

Pursuing Takemaru over the hills, the soldiers quickly lost ground, all save for Inuyasha, who pursued him relentlessly. But even he managed to lose sight of their quarry amidst the stone ruins just over the rise. Plenty of broken rocks and over-turned columns gave their enemy lots of places to hide.

"Get back here!" Ginkotsu yelled, stomping up beside Inuyasha and ready for some good ol' revenge.

Sango and Kohaku hung back at one particular rock, spotting a black liquid on it that fizzled and hissed. Curious, Kohaku held out a knife to test the substance... and was rewarded with the edge being melted clean off. Acid blood.

"Follow the blood," Bankotsu ordered, spotting similar spots of it everywhere. "If we can follow it we can..."

Erupting out of the ground, spraying sand and chunks of rock everywhere, great scorpions the size of horses emerged from the earth, snapping pinchers and lashing out with poisonous tails. The soldiers fell back in the face of this new menace, and Takemaru used it to slip away. Augmented by a higher class of demonic blood, the monstrous scorpions shared in Narakus hatred of men, and they sprang forward to attack the soldiers, the hunters, and especially Inuyasha.

Renkotsu knocked an arrow and fired, while Bankotsu and Inuyasha both charged the lead scorpion, trying to knock aside its deadly claws and avoid its stinging tail while their comrade went for its soft eyes and underbelly. Sango and Kohaku engaged another one, the former sending her mighty boomerang slicing through the air to cut its tail clean off while Kohaku ducked and dodged under pinchers almost as big as he was. The remainder of the band engaged a final scorpion charging towards them, knocking aside columns like toothpicks and smashing into Mukotsu and Ginkotsu hard enough to knock them off their feet.

Kyokotsu grabbed the scorpion's tail in his mighty arms, trying to pin it down by sheer strength alone, but the beast thrashed and writhed in his grip, struggling to free itself. He was flung off his feet and flat on his stomach. Before Kyokotsu could rise up again, a viciously barbed tail sink itself in his back so hard the tip erupted out of his belly. He was dead before the venom even had a chance to do its work. Freed, the same beast went after the hanyou and the remaining soldiers, knocking Bankotsu and Jakotsu aside and grabbing up Inuyasha in its mighty claw. Growling, he tried to bring his blade to bear, but the hide was too thick to cut. The scorpion scarcely felt his attacks as its hideous stinger, dripping green ichor, rose up...

Inuyasha looked up, sure he was about to see his final sight...

... when an arrow of light streaked through the air, impaling the scorpion's stinger and causing it to erupt in a ball of light. The flesh literally dissolved half of the tail as the beast roared in pain, and Inuyasha glanced up to see who his savior was.

It was Kikyo, perched on a nearby hilltop, her bow still twanging from when she'd fired her arrow. She gave a cool little nod, her expression still utterly calm as she notched another arrow.

With the sacred arrows and some back-up from the demon hunters, the tide began to turn against the monstrous scorpions. Kohaku slid underneath one to slice at its vulnerable under-belly as Sango deflected its stinger and claws with her enormous boomerang. Seeing another of the soldiers in trouble, she leapt backwards and hurled her weapon through the air, knocking a stinger off-course before it could impale Mukotsu. Not that it saved him long, as the beast stumbled from the blow, crashing towards him. Mukotsu was crushed under the beasts weight before he could even utter a final cry of horror, but he bought enough time for Bankotsu to retrieve his sword and leap onto the scorpion's back. With a mighty heave he buried the weapon up to the hilt in the scorpion's back, the tip erupting out its gut as it twitched, screeched horrible, and expired.

More demonic scorpions crawled over the rocky hillside to encircle their little group, and these ones were even bigger than before. This next brood towered nearly as high a two story building. Bankotsu quickly gathered the remaining survivors in a tight group to defend against them.

"How many is it?"

"Two?! No, three!"

"Two more!" Kohaku said, pointing.

"Good grief, they've gotten even bigger!" Renkotsu said, notching another arrow and wishing it was something larger as well, like a ballistae bolt. Or, while he was wastefully wishing, a thunderbolt.

Bankotsu quickly took stock of their dead. Counting himself, the 'honor guard' had shrunk to a mere Band of Three, the hanyou was still with them, the two hunters were on their feet, if a bit roughed up. They wouldn't last much longer against foes like this, but none the less they would make their stand here.

Inuyasha gave a roar, ready to charge, and the scorpions began to swarm in... and then abruptly stopped.

No, they hadn't stopped. They were being... pulled? A strange wind had picked up, growing in power every second, as Inuyasha watched in awe. The soldiers dug in their heels as the air sucked up the scorpions, so mighty it lifted them clean off the ground, drawing them towards a single point... a man in black and purple robes, standing on the nearby ridge. As they watched, unable to quite comprehend, the scorpions were literally sucked into a point on his left palm, engulfed in a black void. With most of the demonic spawn defeated, he slung a prayer bead over his wrist and the wind suddenly died down to nothing, vanishing as if it had never been.

Nor was he the only the only one who'd arrived. There were many of them, all wearing the robes of priests and priestesses. Two more of the entourage, a pair of priestesses in red and blue robes, completed a pacifying spell that rendered the remaining scorpions docile. They sank to their multitude of legs before the gathered humans in deference.

"What _are_ they?" breathed Jakotsu, sinking to his knees in relief.

"Priests," Bankotsu replied, identifying them immediately. "I've fought alongside priests before. In the legion. They wander the desert, destroying demons and purifying their bones to drive them off."

"Enemies?"

"Idiots," he replied. "Or so I always thought."

"Well... right now someone should go thank them," Inuyasha said, about to march over and do that, as well as get some answers.

He made it exactly three paces... before collapsing onto his knees. His elbow burned like hellfire where Takemaru had bit him. Swiftly moving to his side, Kikyo saw the damage was already starting to happen, the venom spreading through his body at a rapid pace.

"What is it?" asked Bankotsu, recoiling from the look of blackened veins. Within seconds it had spread up the hanyou's entire arm and didn't appear to be stopping anytime soon.

"Venom from Naraku," Kikyo identified instantly.

"Then you need to pray," Bankotsu said, kneeling beside Inuyasha. "Pray to Inutaisho for strength."

He just snarled at the suggestion. "Never."

"Pray to your damned father," Bankotsu growled. He wouldn't let all this be in vain.

"NO!"

Inuyasha would rather die than accept any help from the arrogant demon lord. Problem was, right now, those were exactly his two choices, as he writhed about on the ground in utter agony, the venom working ever closer to his still-beating heart.

Intent to silence it forever.

* * *

 **Authors Notes:  
** And again, more parallels, a sword only useful in the hands of the hero, a mount that flies through the air. Just ad I couldn't let Sango ride Kirara as well.


	5. Prices to Pay

In the city of Edo, people had taken to the streets. Fear and terror held sway over the day as the many restless masses turned to the priesthood for answers. Salvation from the Lord of the Underworld and the demon lords of the Heavens who threatened to destroy everything they held dear.

"We must turn our hearts towards Naraku, This is the only way!"

Even this far away, Kagome and Rin could hear them.

"Brothers and sisters, come to me! Come! I have the way out of our misery! Lord Naraku has asked for the princess! Sacrifice one, for the life of the city! Why do they remain silent, while we suffer? Why do they guard a woman whose death will save us? Is she better than anyone of you?"

 _Of course she was_ , Rin thought darkly. _She wouldn't sacrifice any of you in her place_.

"We've long worshiped Lord Inutaisho in Edo, but it is Lord Naraku who now offers a salvation! We must pray to the one demon lord, who showed us our sins! And who offers us redemption, through blood!"

Cheers erupted from the temples as Kagome and Rin watched in horror, the flames of their sacrificial alters climbing ever higher. And time running out before the day of the eclipse. Rin feared it would not be long before they came for blood. The blood of Princess Kagome.

 _Please, Inuyasha_ , she thought. _Hurry_.

* * *

A pair of copper coins were laid over their eyes.

Seeing the hunters confusion at the custom, Bankotsu explained. "A bribe for the ferryman."

Bitter was his gaze as he watched the priests march past in a line, chanting to themselves quietly. For their part, the Band of Seven, now a mere Band of Three, kept watch.

Inside the tent, Inuyasha growled angrily, feeling his blood boil as he clawed at the injury on his arm. The head priest, one Miroku by name, knelt by his side as he did his best to keep the symptoms at bay.

"You're burnin' up," he said, feeling Inuyasha's forehead. It was like a great fire raged inside of him. The poison at work.

Kikyo knelt by his side, offering him a bowl of water. "Drink this."

It did little to abate his pain or his thirst, as Inuyasha flickered in and out of consciousness.

"I'll get more water," the undead woman said. She was halfway to the door when Miroku stopped her.

"No, we need you. We've waited many years for the one who'll free us from the tyranny of the demon lords. We cannot let him perish now. And the only way we can do that... is together."

The other soldiers began to file in, as well as the hunters, gathering around the fallen form of Inuyasha.

"Bankotsu, look."

Glancing down at his hip, Bankotsu saw a familiar glow coming from the bag at his side. The one where he'd stored the sword Inuyasha had received. Reaching inside, he saw the battered blade was glowing. It did not assume its former length and majesty, but somehow it seemed... more... than it had a moment ago.

"That's it..." Miroku said in sudden understanding. Grabbing the blade out of Bankotsu's hand with surprising suddenness, he swiftly moved to Inuyasha's side. The weapon only continued to glow more brightly as he placed it on the hanyou's chest. Inuyasha hissed, growling, his sharp teeth gnashing the air as Miroku used the weapon to hold him down. Its power radiated outwards, cleansing away the venom in Inuyasha's body.

"It recognizes its own," Miroku said, holding it steady as Inuyasha fell unconscious. However, it was a restful sleep he had fallen into, and it seemed he was no longer in danger. The poison had been wholly filtered from his body. "The Tetsusaiga has healed him."

"Tetsusaiga?"

"The name of the sword," Miroku replied. "It means Iron Crushing Fang."

"How do you know that?" demanded Bankotsu.

The priest shrugged his shoulders casually. "I simply do."

* * *

They camped out the remainder of the day with the priests, who bound the soldiers and hunters wounds, applying herbs of healing power and chanting spells to speed up the regenerative process. Inuyasha spent much of it in the tent of Miroku, recovering. Finally, however, as the sun began to set, he stepped out, weary but ready to resume their quest. Bankotsu, eager to be gone, declared they left in ten minutes. Kikyo was protesting their sudden departure.

"He's not ready to travel yet."

"Time's slipping away Kiyko," the captain reminded her.

"He's maybe a hanyou, but he's still only mortal."

Bankotsu ignored her, stepping up the ridge to find Inuyasha, finishing off a flask of water. The wound on his arm was an ugly scar but at least it was healed now. He looked to be fit, if not quite at peak condition once again.

"Feeling better?" asked Bankotsu.

"A little bit," Inuyasha replied.

"Good." A split second later, a fist flew at his face, catching Inuyasha in the jaw and sending him flying to the ground.

"Your pride is killing my men!" Bankotsu angrily exclaimed. "You were given gifts, use them, damn you!"

"These gifts are a trap!" Inuyasha snarled back at him.

"I do not care what they are, use them!" he hurled the broken sword at Inuyasha, who grabbed it out of the air only to toss it to the ground.

"NO!" he roared, making Bankotsu recoil. "I do not wanna use that sword or anything that they give me!"

"So, we'll just continue to die for you?"

That collection of words may have been all that stopped Inuyasha from tearing out his throat then and there. That, and the looks he was receiving. From the hunter siblings, Sango and Kohaku, from the head priest, Miroku, even from what remained of the Band of Seven. Even from Kikyo.

"I can't become like them," Inuyasha finally said. "If I do this, I'd do it as a man."

"But you are _not_ just a man."

"I choose to be," Inuyasha protested.

"A man cannot do this, Inuyasha."

"According to whom, the demons?" he asked, pointing out a hole in his logic.

That did bring up Bankotsu short, but he pressed on anyway. It was not his nature to retreat. "If I had your gifts..." he grumbled, picking up the broken sword and lamenting how it stayed a piece of bent and rusted metal.

Inuyasha just glared at him.

"When you need your sword, it's in my bag," Bankotsu said.

* * *

That little bit of drama concluded, they resolved to press on, fast and hard as they could. Their journey was aided, however, but most unexpected help. The priests had resolved to join their trip, and were providing an unusual form of transportation to employ on the way there. It was coming into view now, as Miroku rode atop of one of the great beasts that had nearly killed them earlier. They had tamed the demonic scorpions and now built a few makeshift tented carriages to ride atop of them.

"They're ridin' it," Jakotsu said in amazement.

"They just tried to kill us. I'm not getting on it," Renkotsu said. His fellow soldiers felt likewise.

That didn't stop the hunter siblings, Sango and Kohaku, to come charging between them, the younger sibling knocking the older sister aside at a chance to climb atop of the great beasts.

"Magnificent," Sango said, lifting herself up deftly onto a claw and from there to the beasts back. Settling onto it like she owned the beast. "Well? What are you waiting for?

Bankotsu was impressed as well. "Well, I suppose we do need to make up the lost time."

"We'll make a good time," Miroku promised, easing into the saddle beside Sango.

"Not good enough. The eclipse is drawing near," Kikyo intoned, as always keeping pace on foot, never too far away but never too close. "We _must_ hurry."

* * *

Travelling by giant scorpion was definitely a new experience. If nothing else, it would make quite the tale to tell when they got back to Edo.

Renkotsu, however, definitely didn't care for it.

"This thing is making me feel sick," he grumbled, feeling his stomach rebel at the rocking motion.

Inuyasha smirked, having felt worse at sea. "Trust me, it is better on top of the scorpion than inside of one."

They all shared a laugh at that. All but Bankotsu. He didn't even look up from sharpening his massive sword, his dour expression never changing.

"Don't you have smile?" Inuyasha asked, tired of his grim demeanor.

"When I spit in the eyes of the demon lords," Bankotsu declared darkly. "Then I'll smile."

* * *

Finally, they reached their destination. A gray waste of rocks and smoke, littered with the foul stench of ash in the air and bones in the ground. If ever there was a place abandoned by both man and demon alike, it was here.

"What is this place?" asked Jakotsu.

"The locale name is the Garden of Bones," Miroku replied ominously.

Bankotsu filled them in on its colorful history. "This is where Ryukoytsei defeated the elder demons. The first demons. It's liable to be exactly what Edo will look like when we fail."

Inuyasha rolled his eyes at the soldier's cynicism, but the soldiers were clearly terrified. Jakotsu looked ready to soil himself.

"Every step we take, is an insult to the Demon Lords."

Having grown sick of hearing about how upset the demon lords would be, Inuyasha could only snarl out a "Good," as he trudged up the hillside and into the gloom. A series of stairs in the rock served as a guide to where the Dark Witch was to be found.

Kikyo laid a restraining hand on his shoulder as they neared their the base of the stairs. "Inuyasha," she warned. "Only ask what you need to know, nothing more."

"Yeah, sure," he replied bluntly, shaking off her hand.

* * *

The climb was long, arduous, and difficult. The air thinned as they reached the topmost mountain peak, where dark storm clouds gathered. Lightning flashed in the sky overhead, providing brief illumination, as they reached the rocky crags where the Dark Witch lived. It did not escape their notice the rock formations resembled fingers. The five fingers of a hand, into which they stepped its palm. Candles lit atop of blackened skulls told them they had arrived, as did they stewing cauldron at the center of the rocky clearing.

Inuyasha spotted her first. A silver-haired woman with dark clothes. She may have been beautiful, but the evil and arrogance stamped on her features ruined the effect. A criss-cross of terrible scars covered the left side of her face, the eye of which had been torn out.

"Visitorss," she hissed, opening her singular eye. She was evidently pleased by what she saw. "Inuyasha... the son of Inutaisho... flesh of a demon lord..."

"We only came here for information," Inuyasha said, ignoring how she moved closer. Not walked, moved, like she floated just an inch or so off the ground, flitting through the air until she was uncomfortably close, and gazing at him hungrily.

"The flesh of a demon lord," she purred. "Deliciouss..."

"Witch," cursed one of the soldiers, tightening the grip on his sword.

Tsubaki the Dark Witch glared at them, and a terrible hissing sound was heard all around, like a mighty serpent encircled them. But nothing could be seen amongst all the fog and shadows.

"Going to answer my questions or not?" Inuyasha growled, tempted to reach for his sword. But he needed this information, and he stayed his hand.

She lifted up a finger and wagged it at him, the nail dark and long like a claw. "You want to know about Ryukoytsei. How to sslay him."

Inuyasha relaxed marginally. "That's right."

"A wassted journey," she hissed. "Ryukoytsei fears no weapon. A hundred men could not kill him. An _army_ could not kill him."

"It must have some weakness," Inuyasha protested. "Nothing is invincible."

"Perhapss," Tsubaki hissed. "But payment demandss... ssacrifice!"

She made a gesture, and a hideous fanged serpent rose up out of the smoke and shadows, speeding through the air with fangs bared. Inuyasha quickly snapped out a hand, grabbing the snake by the neck, tightening it until he was ready to snap it off.

"No!"

"Answer the question or I crush this," Inuyasha snarled, seeing how the Dark Witch prized her little serpent familiar. "Tell me how to kill Ryukoytsei!"

Tsubaki hesitated, but there was no real course left open for her. The snake was her soul, without it she was doomed. "There iss a solution," she finally said. "But it iss an impossible one."

Inuyasha nodded, tightening his grip, plainly telling her without words to continue on. He needed details.

"The gorgon Kagura. Anything of flesh is killed by her gaze. Even the flesh of demons and gods. Her power could destroy Ryukoytsei," Tsubaki promised. She seemed to flinch as Inuyasha tightened his grip. She and the serpent were linked. Good to know.

"Where do we find her?" Inuyasha pressed.

"Her prisson lies across the river Styx at the edge of the Underworld."

Bankotsu snorted at this solution. "Kagura's no use to us. We can't control her."

"Then we'll take her head," Inuyasha spat.

"Clever boy, clever..." the Dark Witch hissed. "Now... the sserpent... release it."

Growling, he honored his deal, but Inuyasha flung the slithering serpent as far as he could without tossing it clean off the side of the cliff face. He marched over to his allies as they turned to depart, and Tsubaki fluttered over to reclaim her serpent, clutching it to her bosom protectively.

"Wait!"

Inuyasha paused, glancing back over his shoulder.

"There's more," Tsubaki hissed, stroking the top of her snake's head as it coiled around her neck and shoulders. "Don't you want to know?"

Kikyo glanced up in alarm. "Inuyasha, no."

"Your journey doess not end well, flesh of Inutaisho," Tsubaki said in a lilting, sing-song voice. "Fatess have spoken. You will die. You will _all_ die."

"A lie," Kohaku said, unwilling to believe it.

Tsubaki just shook her head slowly, on the verge of giggling in sick delight. "What iss written... iss history. You... Inuyasha... you will... die..."

Inuyasha glared at the Dark Witch, tempted to take her head off and crush her filthy serpent as well, but in the end, turned on his heel and marched off, ignoring her wicked cackles as they echoed behind his back, making his hackles rise. They echoed off the mountains as they descended the stairs, howling on the wind at their backs.

* * *

Finally reaching the base of the stairs, they set up camp for the night, Sango and Kohaku outfitting their new scorpion mount while Miroku set to cooking a fire. The other soldiers helped gather what little wood could be found in the region while Inuyasha pondered what next to do. He wandered off, needing time to think alone.

As he walked down a pathway in the hills, however... he realized he was not alone.

There was another walking a parallel path. They would meet in a few more yards down the way. Pausing, Inuyasha regarded the man with a curious eye. Brown robes and a hood covered his face, concealing who he was. And he had a strong, familiar sort of odor about him.

Inuyasha had been travelling long enough by now to know that such a thing was not a common occurrence, and he stepped forward with his sword drawn, pointing it at the hooded man's throat. "Who are you?" he snarled.

"Well, if you must call me something... you can call me... father," the man said as he threw back his hood. Beneath was the face of Inutaisho, the King of the Heavens. Only somewhat less impressive without his shimmering armor of mithril or his fur cape, but his face was the same as countless statues and busts across Japan. "If you wish."

Such an arrogant display set Inuyashas hackles up immediately. "My father is dead. He's was killed by a God."

Inutaisho's expression softened a little at this remark. "An unfortunate casualty on the war men brought on themselves."

"Men didn't murder my family, your brother did," Inuyashsa proclaimed angrily, hand going for his sword hilt.

Evidently his father wasn't interested in debating semantics, however. He had come with a warning instead. "You heard Tsubaki's prophecy, you won't defeat Ryukoytsei... much less Naraku. If you continue this journey you will die and Edo will still fall."

Inuyasha resisted the urge to simply rake his claws across the elder demons face, somehow even he knew that would be an incredibly stupid move on his part. "If you're so sure, why are you here, old man?"

"To offer you a sanctuary," Inutaisho replied evenly. "Your blood is mine Inuyasha. It's time to join me in the Heavens and start living like a proper demon lord."

His offer was considered... for barely half a second. Inuyasha spat at his fathers' feet. "I'd rather die in the mud with those men, than live forever as a false deity."

"You foolish boy, men's entire existence is the gift of my grace!"

"For someone who worked so hard to protect and guide humans, you sure don't know much about us," Inuyasha remarked. "We live, we fight, and we die... for each other. NOT for you."

He sheathed his sword. "Tell Naraku I'll see him soon."

Inutaisho pulled himself up to his full height, just barely resisting the urge to sigh. "I will not make this offer again," he warned.

"Good. 'cause I hate to refuse you twice," Inuyasha grumbled as he stepped past the older demon, barely avoiding colliding shoulders with him. He may have been pissed off but he wasn't stupid.

"Wait..."

Inutaisho retrieved a single coin from his sash, holding it up for Inuyasha to see. "It's expensive where you're going."

With a flick of his fingers, he tossed it to the young hanyou, who caught it easily. A single simple silver piece. A bribe for the ferryman. When Inuyasha looked up, his father had already vanished. But he could still hear an ominous howl on the wind, the howling of a great dog demon lord. The King of the Heavens.

* * *

 **Authors Notes:  
** Obviously cut out a lot of what I felt was unnecessary addition, like the Djinn (which is a ridiculous inclusion in a _Greek_ myth) to streamline the story and move it along to the juicier parts of the story. Had originally hoped for three witches of Kagura, Kanna and Kaguya, but needed the three of them for different roles elsewhere, so the role was condensed simply for Tsubaki.

Also realized halfway through the story Tetsusaiga had never been named as such when it was gifted to Inuyasha, since Perseus' sword had never been named in the film. Thus, had Miroku provide the explanation for it. He's a priest. They know things. Nothing to see here, move along.


	6. Face of Evil

Far fewer in number than they had been, and even more ragtag than ever with the addition of Miroku and the demon hunters, the Band of Seven was looking weary and worn. They had journeyed farther than any before and faced challenges and dangers the likes of which they could only have dreamed of a mere month ago. And there was more still yet to do before the tale could come to an end.

Inuyasha made his way over to them, still fiddling with the coin he'd been given. As he approached, Sango and Kohaku bid him closer, unveiling their latest little gimmick.

"A shield, fashioned from demon bones," they explained. "Stronger and lighter than any metal. Very rare and high quality item."

Inuyasha accepted the shield, though it felt awkward on his arm, and slung it over his back. Perhaps it could protect him from attacks he could not see coming. His sword and claws would be enough for those who were foolish enough to stand in front of him.

It would have to be, if he judged the expressions of the demon hunters correctly.

"You're not coming with us, are you?" he asked, already knowing their answer.

The siblings shook their heads. "We can fight anywhere... but not in the Underworld," explained Sango.

"This is where we part ways," Kohaku said.

Sango stepped forward and gently wrapped a single arm around the hanyou, hugging him briefly. "Good luck, Inuyasha."

Kohaku shook his hand, then they departed with scarcely another word, dipping their heads politely as they climbed atop of the mighty scorpion mounts and rode him off. No telling which way they were going, though if it had been Inuyasha, far away seemed the safest of destinations. But for his part, Inuyasha took the time to rejoin the others, looking to see if any others showed signs of wanting to quit while the quitting was good. Most of the priests were departing, but their head monk, Miroku, had evidently decided to stay and hear him out.

"You've all heard what the witch said," Inuyasha began. "But we can prove her wrong. I need your help. Will you come with me?"

One by one, they agreed, raising their heads and planting their feet firmly. "We're with you," Bankotsu said. Miroku, by his side, just nodded.

"I know the way," Kikyo added. By this point no one questioned how she had such knowledge.

"Good... then we go to the Underworld... we kill Kagura... and we take her head," Inuyasha said.

Neat, simple, efficient plan. If only it was that easy.

* * *

Entrances to the Underworld were far and few between on the surface of the living realm, but one could be found not more than a day's journey from the Dark Witches home. They made good time on foot, making it to the entrance just as the sun had set and the moon began to rise in the night sky, full and pale as a silver coin.

Ominous smoke wafted out of the entrance, noxious fumes that threatened to steal their breath away as they descended down to an underground lake, the water still as stone, dark and foul looking. A rickety dock of dark wood lead out a short ways then abruptly stopped, as if only half completed.

"Now what?" asked Jakotsu, trying to peer into the fog.

"Now we wait for Charon," the hanyou replied, kneeling down by the edge of the docks.

"Charon only ferries the dead," Miroku reminded them casually. His glance slid sidelong across the others of their band.

Renkotsu immediately went for his sword. "If you're hoping for one of us to volunteer...!"

Inuyasha placed a hand on his hilt, shoving his sword back into its sheath as he lifted up the coin his fath-... the demon lord Inutaisho had given him. Holding it up, he let the light of the moon wash over it.

"A bribe for the ferryman," Bankotsu recognized.

Out of the fog and mist, a vessel then appeared. Broken and battered, it seemed a boat fashioned out of driftwood and lashed together by dark rope. It seemed derelict, ready to sink in an instants notice, but somehow never did. It drifted over to the docks where they stood waiting, an ominous cold accompanying it, chilling them down to their very souls. A skeletal figure in a dark shroud stood at the prow of the boat, guiding it, but none could see him clearly. For which they were all profoundly grateful.

"Charon."

Tucking his thumb underneath the coin, Inuyasha tossed it to the ship's captain. A skeletal hand snapped out with sudden speed, bony fingers catching it in mid-air. With the utmost slowness they turned the coin in between skeletal digits, studying it as the moonlight shined down on it. The shrouded figure seemed to nod, bidding them board without a word. One by one, they climbed onto the rickety vessel, and then the boat was in motion again, ferrying them across the lake of death and deeper into the Underworld.

To the temple where Kagura the Gorgon dwelled.

* * *

Silence weighed oppressively as the ship sailed deeper into the darkness and fog, prompting Jakotsu to pipe up. "So... what happens when we get there?" he asked.

"Just another beast to kill," Renkotsu scoffed, inspecting one of his arrows.

A single dark brow arched at that, Kikyo darkly amused by his thoughts on the matter. "A beast? Oh no. Far worse than that. Did you not know? Kagura was beautiful once. So beautiful she tempted man and demon alike. So beautiful she gained the attention of Choro, the Sea Wolf, with her charms. When he came for her, she ran to the Temple of Kanna, thinking the lady of the mirror would protect her. She didn't. Instead, the Sea Wolf took her on the cold floor of the temple."

Sympathy flickered across the faces of the soldiers, as well as the monk with them.

"She beseeched Kanna for comfort, but the mirror demon felt only revulsion. She made sure no one would ever want Kagura again, and that she would desire to gaze upon a mirror ever after. One look at the creature she has become will turn any living thing to stone. In retaliation, Kagura smashed every last mirror in the temple into shards, and ground the shards into dust."

Wary glances were exchanged as the soldiers processed that information. It certainly didn't bode well for them.

"I cannot assist you within. My curse prevents me," Kikyo went on. "The one last solace granted to Kagura, that she would never harm a woman with her visage. Only men may enter the temple. But no man has _ever_ emerged again."

Silence hung oppressively over them, like a gloomy shroud, as that information sunk in. This was no mere beast indeed they were here to kill. This was a monster every bit as terrible as Ryukoytsei itself.

"I'll be honest boss... I'm not liking our odds," Jakotsu confided to Bankotsu.

* * *

Charon's unholy vessel slid through the water with frightening ease, and within moments they beheld the opposite shoreline, deep in the Underworld. Bankotsu climbed up to the bow of the ship to bear witness, even as Inuyasha joined him.

"I never thought that I could reach this place... while still alive," the weary soldier remarked.

The tone of his voice betrayed his feelings. Inuyasha recognized them well enough, they pounded away in his own chest the same way. Had every day since...

"Who did you lose?"

The older soldier glanced at him darkly, as if angered his inner thoughts had been made so transparent. "My daughter," he finally replied. "Taken away on her sixteenth birthday. Now I have a feeling I'm going to see her soon."

Idly Inuyasha wondered if his family was here as well, waiting for him. But if they were, he'd have to ask them to wait a little longer. He wasn't quite done avenging them yet.

"Let's not give up just yet," the hanyou replied.

Bankotsu grunted. "You brought us this far... wherever it takes us, let's follow this path to the end."

* * *

Settling onto the far docks and climbing ashore, Inuyasha and the others followed the line of dead and petrified trees to the entrance of Kagura's temple, which Kikyo faithfully directed them to. There, she settled down on a rock to await their return. If they returned, of course.

Feeling he ought to say something before they ventured into almost certain death, Inuyasha glanced back at the mismatch band, thinking himself grateful for having known them. He wished he could have known them better, truth be told, but he felt he'd seen them at their best and worst, so he knew them as well as any.

"I knew one great man in my life," Inuyasha said. He wasn't one much for motivational speeches, but some things just needed to be said. "My father. Now I know many more," he indicated the soldiers with him, the monk who'd joined them, even Kikyo, watching from nearby as she always did.

"I know we are all afraid. But my father told me, that someday... someone's gonna have to make a stand. Someday... someone's going to say 'Enough'! This could _be_ that day. So all of you... trust your senses... and don't look this bitch in the eye!"

His words emboldened their hearts as they marched into the lair of Kagura to put an end to her.

* * *

The Temple to Kanna had seen better days. Most of it was in ruins, broken columns and stone everywhere, while further down below great flames licked the floors. Powdered glass was strewn everywhere, making footing treacherous and uneven. An inferno raged far below, promising instant death if any of them should fall. Shadows flickered amongst the flames, putting them all on edge as they eased into the lair of Kagura slowly, trying to find their quarry and equally keen not to meet her gaze.

And then of course, there were the statues. Men carved of stone, scattered all about the temple. Some in armor, some without, but all of them frozen in looks of surprise and horror as their lives were snuffed out in an instance. Several lay broken and shattered on the ground in fragments.

Renkotsu took up a position, sighting along his arrow... and realized a moment later he stood almost side-by-side with a statue in an almost identical pose, the exception being that it's face was twisted in an expression of stark terror. "Well that doesn't inspire much confidence," the soldier grumbled. He fought back the natural instinct to search for their foe. If their eyes met he was done for.

"Quiet," growled Bakotsu, trying to keep clear of the columns. His swords greater size meant he had to have greater room to swing it, which was dangerous when fighting a foe like this in the open. "Listen..."

"Jakotsu, keep your eyes down," Inuyasha cautioned.

The effeminate soldier nodded and did his best to comply, but he'd be lying if he said he wasn't shaking down to his bones. When the laughter started, it didn't help. Then the wind began to pick up inside of the cavern, raising up flames hundreds of feet high from deep down below. All the activity set everyone on edge.

"Here we go!"

The shot came out of nowhere, an arrow piercing the darkness to penetrate Jakotsu's shoulder, the tip almost passing clear through. Thankfully, the wound was non-lethal, but it knocked him to the ground all the same. Inuyasha and the others tried to find the source of it, as more arrows peppered the air. Another nearly impaled Miroku before he brought up his staff, striking he wooden haft with such force it sent him tumbling back and down to another level of the ruins.

Inuyasha dug his sword into the column nearest and reached down to pull him up.

"Remember, don't look her in the eye!" someone shouted, as chaos erupted all around. Between the flames and the arrows, the laughter and the wind, it was like fighting in a maelstrom, unable to tell which way was up or down.

Bankotsu fell, an arrow through his stomach, but he scarcely felt the pain as he fell back against a rock, breaking off both sides of the arrow and stumbling to his feet, growling as he reclaimed his sword. He caught sight of something long and scaly slithering up the side of the cavern, realized it must have been Kagura. The wicked laughter only confirmed this.

Divided and split up, the mocking laughter and rising hellfires drawing their attention, Kagura began to pick them off one by one. Companions back to back would turn only to see their allies frozen as stone. Renkotsu gave off a horrified yell that died in his throat as he became a rock statue of himself. Jakotsu did not last much longer, quickly panicking, screaming as the gorgon came for him, throwing his sword-whip in every direction he heard so much as a whisper. It left him painfully vulnerable as Kagura came speeding towards him before he could draw his weapon back in from a painfully wild swing. He turned to stone as he fell backwards off the side of the ruins, shattering on the rocks a level below. Inuyasha was there.

He looked down at the effeminate soldier stone face, still frozen in horror, and realized he was to blame for his fate. The mocking laughter of Kagura only reminded him of whom he had to repay that debt to. He tightened his grip around his sword, listening... his dog ear twitched...

"GO!"

Arrows whizzed past his head as he and Miroku sprinted to escape their barrage, as Kagura took the battle to a distance again, keeping away from their weapons, keeping them off balance, afraid, confused, and apart.

He finally caught sight of Kagura over a stone column. She searched for new targets as Inuyasha ducked back down, avoiding her gaze. But a glimpse had been all he needed to see. Kagura's serpent hair and snake-like body were complimented by her red and white kimono, and for all her evil, her face was pleasant enough to look upon, bright green eyes and a pair of radiant red lips. She was otherworldly and eerie.

But she was still a stone cold monster, and Inuyasha was going to cut off her goddamned head.

"Get ready," he advised Miroku. "I'm going to lure her out..."

Miroku nodded, setting his staff aside and grasping a handful of the prayer beads on his arm.

Roaring a challenge, Inuyasha went charging through the ruins, drawing Kagura's aim. Arrows bounced off the robes of the fire rat as he skidded to a halt moments before plunging into the flaming abyss below. He could hear her closing in, slithering around and smashing into columns so close the dust was clinging to his hair, and yet he couldn't dare look around and fight. Not yet.

Circling around another column, he ducked underneath Kagura's serpentine coils, making his way around the edge and into position for their trap. Finally, he leapt past the last obstacle, and spotted Miroku. "Now!"

The priest threw up his arm and tore of his prayer beads. "WIND TUNNEL!"

The air sucked in all around it as the gorgon went blindly into the trap they'd laid, crashing into the ground and digging her claws in to avoid the worst of it. She howled in agony as the wind tore at her body, threatening to suck her up, but before he could finish the job, Miroku felt a tail thicker than a tree trunk slam into the back of his legs, knocking him off his feet. He quickly covered his arm before his Wind Tunnel destroyed anything he did not wish it to, including himself.

Kagura hissed and reared up, even as her tail coiled around his body, pinning Miroku's arms at his sides, and lifting his head up to meet her terrible gaze. Her snake-like hair writhed as she howled in his face.

 _At least I can die to a beautiful sight_ , he lamented, seconds before he too was stone.

Inuyasha could only watch in horror. Another down, and easily their strongest. Tsubaki had been right. This was an impossible task.

Even so, he fought on. It was all he could do now. He crawled towards his lost sword and shield, noticing only as he did so the inside of the latter had a mirror-like finish. Kohaku had done his work well. And in that reflection... he could see Kagura, clear as day. And Bankotsu as well. The old soldier was still standing, on a high rise overlooking them both, ready to attack.

He could see Kagura slithering towards him, injured but ready to finish her work. She rose up behind Inuyasha as her snake-like hair writhed and hissed, her own lips curling up into a vindictive smirk. Before the gorgon could strike, however, Bankotsu came down on her with his massive sword pointed down, impaling her on the sharp tip and driving it clean through her snake-like tail and into the ground, pinning her in place.

Kagura's scream seemed to shake the Underworld, her whole body writhing in agony she hadn't known in... centuries at least. Fully aware of how mortal the wound was, as well as how little of his own time he had left, Bankotsu could only grin. He knew full well he'd helped Inuyasha to win, and accomplished his mission. His final words said it all.

"Let them know _men_ did this."

The inflection of his words left little doubt he was finally including Inuyasha amongst their number.

Kagura howled, lashing out to grab Bankotsu's throat, serpent-hair writhing as she unleashed her terrible gaze upon the last soldier from Edo. His form quickly stiffened and turned to so much granite, but not before his lips curled upwards into his first, last, and only smile. It chipped his stone face before the transformation finished taking effect.

Then Kagura shattered him with her a swipe of her arm, sending stone fragments to rain down onto the ground as Inuyasha grabbed up his shield. Without taking his eyes off of the reflection of his enemy, he stood up and spread his stance, poised and ready to strike. Growling at her reflection, Inuyasha made his way backwards, sword upraised, watching Kagura only in the safety of the mirror. She slithered forward for another strike, intent to finish this last intruder off...

And Inuyasha turned...

And swung his sword...!

* * *

 **Authors Notes:  
** And again, stream lined the idea of Kikyo training Inuyasha to decapitate Kagura, which was unnecessary romantic tension at best in the film and served no major purpose I could see.


	7. Day of the Eclipse

Kikyo waited patiently by the entryway to Kanna's temple and the lair of the gorgon Kagura, unable to do anything but wait for their return. If none of them returned, then none of it mattered anymore. Ryukoytsei and Naraku would bring about an age of darkness and despair, and no one would be safe from their tyranny. Her only hope... mankind's only hope... lay with Inuyasha.

Finally, however, she saw movement by the entrance, and a figure step out of the cave shadows. Inuyasha stood there, and hanging from his hand was a bag. From its size and shape, there was no need to guess what its contents could have been.

They had triumphed. The cost had been very high indeed, but they had triumphed. Kagura's head was theirs, and now, the salvation of Edo was at hand. Ryukoytsei's defeat was inevitable.

Kikyo breathed a sigh of relief, and smiled...

... seconds before a length of sharp metal erupted from her belly.

She gave a scream of agony as Inuyasha watched in horror, sprinting down the short distance to her.

"NO!" he yelled, rushing towards her.

As he did, he caught sight of something big and ugly rising up behind her. The monster who'd fought them back in the forest. The monster whose poisonous blood made for demonic scorpions. The wielder of the unholy blade of Naraku, Tokijin.

Takemaru, the fallen king.

With a mighty heave, one handed at that, he tossed Kikyo's limp form aside like she was a doll, drawing out his sword and raising it up, pointing it towards Inuyasha, his true target. He glared up at the hanyou as his hand tightened around the horrific sword-hilt piercing his arm with its tendrils. His other limb, the one where Bankotsu had cut off his hand, now sported a tri-pronged blade attached to the stump. A crude but undeniably lethal looking instrument.

"Now it's just you and me... son of Inutaisho," he growled.

Seeing Kikyo cut down so quickly and callously filled the golden-eyed hanyou with a terrible rage. With a mighty roar, Inuyasha threw down the bag and his shield and charged forward with sword alone, determined to reduce his enemy to so many bloody chunks. Takemaru knocked him aside with a mighty kick, sending him crashing into what remained of his comrades gear. Not intent to give the hanyou a chance to escape alive twice, Takemaru reared back his sword and slashed through the air. Inuyasha dodged the attack, rolling onto his back, but Takemaru relentlessly continued to try and dice him into little pieces. Inuyasha parried one such blow from the tri-pronged wrist-blade, but a twist of the metal snapped his own sword in two. Now clutching only the broken half of a sword, Inuyasha was rapidly running out of options on how to fight.

He replied with a low thrust that dug his broken sword into the bigger man's thigh. Growling, Inuyasha tried to bury his blade in there, if not pierce clean through the leg, but if he'd hope this would make Takemaru fall, he was sadly mistaken. The power of a mighty demon lord flowed through his body, giving him phenomenal strength. Tokijin pulsed in his hand, giving him the power to stand and ignore the pain of his injuries, and he lashed out with another kick, catching Inuyasha in the face and sending him tumbling away.

Inuyasha rolled to his feet, spitting out a tooth that had been knocked loose, his lips bloody as he charged again. He feinted with his sword, with Takemaru dodged, and swung a fist instead into the beast's face, hoping to repay the lost tooth. He may as well have been striking a cliffside. Takemaru growled, responding with a vicious punch from his sword arm, crashing it into Inuyasha's stomach and knocking the wind out of him. His sword clattered to the ground from nerveless hands as Takemaru impaled him with his pronged hand, tearing through Inuyasha's shoulder. With a mighty heave, the great brute sent the white-haired hanyou sailing through the air to crash into another stone cropping, tumbling to the ground...

... inches from the broken, battered, bent form of a familiar sword.

The Tetsusaiga, having somehow tumbled out of Bankotsu's pack in the fight.

Inuyasha stared at it in horrid fascination, looking over to Kikyo, who lay dying on the rocky ground nearby. Blood trickled from her pale lips, staining them red as she managed a small nod. _Use it_ , she urged him. A gift from his father. It may yet counter the demonic weapon that Takemaru wielded.

Growling, Inuyasha lashed out a hand and grabbed the sword's hilt, feeling it pulsate in his grip. The blade instantly manifested its full demonic form, growing many times in size, becoming sharper and keener than any mortal blade, as Inuyasha reared it back in his hand. He swung hard, and Takemaru countered, the blades clashing against one another. But the sheer force of Inuyasha's blow knocked Takemaru clean off his feet, tumbling back over hard rocks. Now purely on the defensive, the great brute ducked and dodged, not wishing to let their blades come into contact again, as Inuyasha pressed his assault. Swinging like a wild man, Inuyasha attacked with the Tetsusaiga so fast it seemed to cut through the very air itself.

But this new weapon did not ensure victory. Takemaru kept up with quick jabs of his other arm, the blade holding off or deflecting Inuyasha's demon powered sword so he could continue with strikes from his own wicked weapon. Tokijin proved to be almost as powerful as the Tetsusaiga, and may have been faster besides. The superior weapon would not determine the winner of this battle.

It would come down to strength, skill, and willpower.

Inuyasha drove the fallen king right to the edge of the water, to a small rock outcropping. Determined to end this fight once and for all, the white-haired hanyou grabbed his blade with both hands, lifting it up and giving a mighty yell. He struck with all of his strength as Takemaru did the same. The Tetsusaiga and Tokijin collided in mid-air... and the blade of Naraku shattered as Inuyasha's fang tore through it in a downward sweep, then thrust forward to bury itself in Takemaru's breast, right through his blackened heart. As the blade buried deeper in his body, the divine power washed over Takemaru, washing away the foul taint of Naraku's influence and restoring the man he'd once been. The blackened hilt of his own wicked weapon released its grip on his wrist, the tendrils dissolving into smoke as it clattered to the ground.

Finally himself again, Takemaru gazed up in horror at Inuyasha, who bore down on the blade with all of his strength. But his rage vanished like mist in the morning sun as he beheld the man behind the brutish aura. The real Takemaru, so long lost in his own pain.

"Inuyasha...! Don't... become like them..." he gasped out with his dying breath.

His final words said, Takemaru stumbled backwards, falling off the rocky outcropping and into the murky water below, sliding off the Tetsusaiga in the process. His body swiftly vanished beneath the brackish waters, vanishing from sight moments later.

For his part, Inuyasha could not have been more stunned if the final blow had been through _his_ chest. He finally realized just who it was he had slain, piecing the puzzle together with his final words. That had been King Takemaru, his mother's husband. In many ways, another father of Inuyasha's. And he'd just died by Inuyasha's own hand. _No_ , he decided. Naraku was to blame. That was his demonic aura surrounding Takemaru. And the sword Tokijin. Swiftly Inuyasha kicked the broken hilt into the water with its former wielder. Naraku would be the one to pay for this. All of it.

Quickly remembering more important matters, Inuyasha sprang through the air, dropping the Tetsusaiga in the process, and bounding over to Kikyo's side. He was there seconds, easing her onto her back and into his arms.

"I'm here," he said quickly, having no clue what to do. He had no knowledge of medicine, and the wound looked uncomfortably mortal. "I'm here."

"There is no time," she said, oddly serene as she seemed to grow still paler, all the color leeching out of her features. "The eclipse..."

Following her gaze skyward, Inuyasha saw indeed the moon was starting to make its way gradually in front of the sun, obscuring the light. Edo's ten days were up. The doom foretold by the Lord of the Underworld was about to come to pass. Ryukoytsei was going to rise in a matter of hours.

"Inuyasha, you must go before it's too late," she insisted.

He shook his head. "I'm not going anywhere," he protested.

She favored him with a small smile, even as more color faded from her cheeks. "My fate is certain, but the fate of Edo is still in your hands."

"All my life, you've been there. You've never left me. I'm not leaving you now," he declared, ignoring the stinging in his eyes. "I can't lose you too."

Kikyo reached out a cold hand, softly resting it against his cheek. "This part of the journey you must do alone."

 _I never wanted to take part in any stupid journey_ , he thought. _I just wanted to avenge my family. I don't want to be alone again_. His eyes squeezed tightly shut as tears streamed down his dirty cheeks.

His turmoil must have been plain as the nose on his face, for Kikyo intoned gently, "Inuyasha... son of Izayoi... you are not just part human, and part demon... you're the best of both. For that is what a hanyou is. Everything will be all right."

"How do you know?"

"I just do," she said, her voice growing ever softer. "Everything will be all right."

As Inuyasha watched, Kikyo's eyes closed and she breathed out slowly. And in doing so, her material form faded into light. Blinking in astonishment, Inuyasha could only watch as a number of wispy white spirits floated away in place of Kikyo, the final remnants of her soul drifting off towards the afterlife. It was beautiful, yet sorrowful. Yet his sadness quickly faded as he reminded himself this had likely been what she'd been seeking her entire life. A way to find peace. A closure to her long, sorrowful existence.

Sighing, he dried his tears, determined to mourn Kikyo properly once all was said and done. But for now, he would honor her memory, and finish what they'd started.

By slaying Ryukoytsei.

* * *

Unfortunately, his task was easier said than done. He had no allies left to call on, no guide to figure out the way back to Edo, he no longer even had a bribe for the ferryman to take him back across the river. He dare not chance swimming for it, even a hanyou could die in those waters, he suspected. He was trapped. As surely and thoroughly as if he'd been locked in a cell on the other end of the world.

Or so it seemed.

As the eclipse began, and the light grew dimmer still as darkness encroached, a shape flitted across the sky, coming to land on the shoreside beside Inuyasha. Blinking golden eyes in surprise, Inuyasha lifted his head as he saw what it was, having all but forgotten about her. But here she was, back in the very nick of time. A means of reaching Edo soon, perhaps within the hour.

Kirara, the Great Demon Cat.

Landing on the rocky beach, the great beast growled in greeting at Inuyasha, who timidly approached the mighty demon cat. She watched him with eyes far too wise for any simple animal. They were the eyes of a wise soul, who had lived a love life and seen many things. Oh but if they could speak of such things, but time was wasting. Remembering how Kikyo had tamed Kirara back in the forest, Inuyasha tentatively stroked it under the chin. Kirara purred, evidently pleased, and then lowered itself onto the ground. As clear an invitation as any to mount up.

He wasted no time, grabbing up his sword, shouldering the bag with Kagura's head, and mounting the demon cat. Kirara gave a mighty roar as her paws and tail burst into flame, and she leapt into the air, carrying the hanyou into the sky. In mere moments they'd crossed the river of death and were on their way. Kirara raced the wind itself all the way back to Edo, and Inuyasha held on grimly, anxious to be there.

 _Just a little longer_ , he promised.

* * *

The moon slid across the sun until all the land was lit by the black light of the eclipse. As prophesized, ten days had passed since the declarations of war. Ten days since the Lord of the Underworld had sealed Edo's fate. The appointed time had come. Sacrifice or destruction, the choice was now in their hands. In their seats in the Heavens, the demon lords watched as the light faded and darkness reigned. Many nervously cast their glances left and right to their fellows, wondering if they all shared the same growing sense od read.

None watched the coming eclipse more closely than Inutaisho, who stood at the very center of them, gazing down at the image of Edo. He did care for humans, he could not help himself. He loved them, wanted to see them safe, and strong. But they had defied him and his rule for long enough, and a punishment was needed.

Naraku's bone armor materialized out of the darkness by his left hand, as Choro stepped up by his right, the old Sea Wolf looking leery of the presence of their youngest sibling, but accepting his necessity in being there.

"Brother..." said Naraku, his voice slick as oil. "It is time for the mortals to pay. My unholy child awaits the command. To do your will."

Inutaisho nodded. It had come down to this, but there need be no more eyes to watch the tragedy to unfold than necessary. "Leave us," he commanded, addressing the lesser demon lords.

One by one they departed, flapping great wings or dematerializing in a column of light, vanishing back to their respective domains. Tekke, Hiten, Manten, Midoriko... even the Queen of the Demon Lords dipped her head and departed in a swirl of silver at her husbands request. Choro was the last to go, nodding his head to his brothers as a crest of water engulfed him and spirited him off to his watery domain. The Heavens were far bigger than any human could possibly comprehend, but for the moment, this centermost council chambers where the King held court, was empty of all save two. Inutaisho stepped up to his throne, eyeing the marble seat disdainfully, and then turned back to regard Naraku. His younger brother was ready, even eager, to begin the destruction of Edo.

A necessary evil, for a greater good.

"Release... Ryukoytsei!" Inutaisho decreed, his powerful voice echoing throughout the Heavens. Demons of all shapes and sizes cowered in fear at his proclamation.

Doom was upon them all.

* * *

Deep below the oceans waves, in the darkest depths of the watery abyss, the ground was split by a mighty force. Cracked asunder by the will of Naraku as he called to his beloved child, Ryukoytsei, the destroyer. Doom was indeed upon them all.

* * *

At the exact same moment, in Edo, the high priest and his flock had finished their arrangements, preparing to make their sacrifice. The black sun cast a gloomy light on them as the rumbling began, far off in the distance, yet heard even this far away. There could be no mistaking what it signified.

The hour of judgement was upon them.

"Ryukoytsei comes now!" the priest proclaimed. "Our suffering ends when the beast is sated! Will it take us? Or will it take... THE PRINCESS?!"

The answer was a resounding chorus of cries for the princess, as if there would be any doubt. Kagome could hear them all the way back at the palace as she watched in dawning horror. Not only for her own life, precious though it was to her, but for her fellows. They'd become little more than frightened beasts.

"It's my name they are calling," she whispered, more to herself than to faithful Rin, always at her side. "This cannot go on."

She did not need to look down to see the gates to the palace fall as the citizens tore them from their hinges, knocking down the number of guards in their way. The will of the people was stronger than the rulers this day, as they stormed the palace, driven on by fear and madness. But Kagome refused to allow anyone else to die on her behalf. She had made her decision.

The angry mob of peasants and commoners recoiled briefly when they saw Kagome stepping down the final staircase herself, moving to meet them with a grace and dignity that left them momentarily humbled. She felt no hatred for them. Only pity.

Her show of dignity in the face of certain death did not sway them, however, the mad priest himself took her hand and guided her along to her sacrifice, howling the entire way, shouting praises to the demon lords until it seemed like his throat would become bloody and torn.

 _I should be so lucky_ , Kagome thought, tired of his prattling.

They arrived with little time to spare. Already the outermost sentries had spotted the rising swells in the ocean as Ryukoytsei drew nearer, his engorged form slithering under the water, the waves caused by his passing smashing against the docks. Thunder boomed overhead as the skies grew dark with heavy clouds. The priest and his congregation of zealots wasted no time in shackling Kagome to a raised wooden platform, the highest and easily reached position in all the city.

"NARAKU!" hollered the priest. "We sacrifice our princess in your hallowed name. Her blood is yours to claim! Take her! Spare us, dark liege! Spare us, Lord of the Underworld!"

Kagome watched in growing horror as a shape began to rise up in the bay before Edo, a dark, writhing shape. Despite her hope of meeting her end with calm, she felt a scream welling its well up her throat.

"It comes, brothers and sisters! IT COMES!" proclaimed the priest. He sounded almost rapturous.

Ryukoytsei began to rise from the waves, and even these simple, small movements from so titanic a creature caused countless hundreds to die as devastation washed over Edo.

* * *

 **Authors Notes:  
** Included a cameo by Sesshoumaru's mother as Hera, primarily to fill time. As well as some of the other prominent demons of Inuyasha's era as the demon lord/gods of this story.


	8. Land, Sea, and Air

"Edo has fallen," Naraku declared, as the very Heavens shook. The entire world seemed to quiver under the chaos and carnage caused by the doom dragon Ryukoytsei. The destruction seemed to strike at the very heart of Inutaisho, who fell to one knee, unable to support himself.

"Do you feel stronger, brother?" Naraku's asked, with no small amount of sarcasm in his tone.

Inutaisho could only stare stupidly, his strength draining out of him with each breath as his youngest brother slithered across the hall towards him, heedless of the destruction. Even reveling in it. Where Inutaisho felt weaker, Naraku looked to only be gaining strength. He spelled it out for his elder brother anyway.

"You thought Ryukoytsei will bring you their prayers. But the great dragon is _my_ child. It feeds only me," he said smugly.

"I command the Heavens," Inutaisho replied, struggling back to his feet by the immense force of his will. "Remember who you serve... remember your place, Naraku!"

"I serve myself," Naraku spat, glaring darkly. "I have always. Ever since you cheated me out of my rightful prize. You sent me to the Underworld to be hated and feared while you basked in the love of mortals. I have never forgotten."

"We... need... the love of humans," the white-haired elder brother said. "It empowers us. Gives us..."

"No, _you_ need it!" the dark-haired younger sibling replied darkly. " _I_ have learned to survive on their _fear_. Ryukoytsei's release is only the beginning. I will tear down the mortal world and throw it into chaos. Your reign is over, brother." A hand snapped out, grabbing a fistful of his brother's hair, twisting him around as Naraku took a step up the dias, standing taller than his brother for the first time. "You can watch... while my servant devours their hopes and destroys their lives. Let their hate and their fear poison your heart. Then, finally... you will know my pain, _brother_."

Inutaisho lifted golden eyes, gazing out at the devastation wrought, then turned them to meet Naraku's, growing cold as steel as they met his treacherous brothers. He had been betrayed, but he was not helpless. There was yet one final move he could make.

"There is still a hanyou in Edo... brother..." he said.

It was worth the look on Naraku's face, as the Lord of the Underworld suddenly saw that, despite his best efforts, the son of Inutaisho lived. Kagura had failed to kill him. Takemaru had failed to kill him. Even Tokijin had failed to kill him. And if that was the case, that meant there was a chance yet all his plans could prove to be ruinous. His eyes were lit by hellish flames as Naraku burst apart in a wave of black heat, washing of Inutaisho and escaping the Heavens. He flew through the air towards Edo to stop the hanyou and prevent any chance of his victory.

Meanwhile, Inutaisho slumped to his knees, unable to hold himself up any longer. Unable even to call back the other demon lords. He was alone now, with only one hope. Finally he did something no demon had done in millennia. He prayed to his one remaining hope.

"Inuyasha..."

* * *

Even a mighty eclipse such as this could not last forever, and in time the moon began to slide away from the sun, allowing slivers of light to once again wash across the landscape. As they did, they fell over one sight in particular.

A great striped feline of monochrome, with paws of fire and teeth larger than knives, leaping across the sky with a red robed hanyou on its back, a leathery bag in one hand, a great sword in the other. They could be no one else.

Inuyasha.

The princess saw him first. Kagome blinked, thinking for a moment that it was some trick of the light. But no, it was he, the hanyou who'd promised to save her. To slay Ryukoytsei and end the tyranny of the demon lords. She could see him clear as day despite the vast distance, and felt a faint flicker of hope swell in her heart.

But it would not be so easy as that.

In a flash of shadows and hellfire, Naraku materialized in the air above Edo, glaring down at the hanyou who dared to defy his will. If no one else could do it, then HE would be the end of Inuyasha.

Gathering all his demonic might, Naraku drew the power in tight, then _flung_ himself in a multitude of directions, his body breaking apart into the thousands of lesser demons that he was composed of, slithering tentacles and winged eyes, skeletal gargoyles and horned fiends, beasts and creatures of unspeakable hideousness. All manner of horrors fill the air. These he set after Inuyasha as the white-haired hanyou clung to Kirara and dove under a dark violet coil of Ryukoytsei rising out of the water, trying to get closer to Kagome. Not only to rescue her, but to position himself. He only got one shot at this, and in order for the head of Kagura to be seen best by the dragon of doom, he had to be in just the right spot.

He was nearly there, in fact, when a great shadowy beast tore the bag from his grip and slipped away as he grabbed at it, narrowly missing it with his claws.

"NO!" Inuyasha howled.

Tugging on the scruff of Kirara's neck, Inuyasha and his mount dove after the hell beast. More of the unholy creatures flew after him. Others dived and shrieked at the foolish humans, who cowered fearfully. Inuyasha drew the Tetsusaiga, and the demonic blade pulsed with white light as he swung it left and right, chopping the myriad spawn to pieces if they stood in his way. Kirara aided with her mighty jaws and fangs, her flaming feet kicking away a bat-winged serpent that tried to grapple her. But the one with the bag kept just out of their reach.

"C'mon, girl, hyah!" Inuyasha shouted.

They needed to get that bag, and the head within, back.

* * *

While Naraku's freakish creatures led Inuyasha on a merry chase, Ryukoytsei rose up out of the depths of the ocean, revealing himself in all of his hideous glory. Hundreds if not thousands of feet high in the air, his great draconic head towered over them, blotting out the light. Scales of a dark violet, harder than stone or iron, lined his body. His underbelly with a lighter shade of purple, but no softer than the rest of him. Great three-toed feet steadied his form against the docks, crushing buildings under his great black claws bigger than any ship Edo had ever seen.

Most terrible of all was his face. Not the great dragon's head, with its hellish red eyes and its array of terrible teeth each longer than a spear, but the horrible white mask in the middle of its forehead, between its curved horns. Blue lines lined the almost feminine face which regarded the carnage below with a grin on its pale blue lips. It was not hunger that motivated Ryukoytsei. This was no hungry beast looking to humans as food.

This was a monster, who lived purely and simply for inflicting destruction. This was evil made flesh.

But Inuyasha couldn't focus on that, he had to get the bag. He dove under a low archway, letting another demon crack its skull against the frame as he kept after the one holding the prize. A long serpent's skeletal swooped in after him, hissing horrifically, but Inuyasha and Kirara ducked under a number of hanging banners. His sword came up, slicing at the nearest one and letting it drop as they passed. The bolts of cloth blinded the creature as it pursued, and it became entangled in one after another until it clattered to the ground, easy pickings for the humans.

Two withered gargoyles tried to swoop in and attack his unguarded flank, but something intervened, knocking them out of the skies as if they'd been struck by a boulder. A great boomerang of hardened demon bone carved a path of destruction through the air, tearing through the lesser demons and finding its way back into the hand of the warrior Sango. Her brother Kohaku tugged on the reins of their scorpion mount as its barbed tail slammed into another great demon, impaling it against the wall. The siblings gave a mighty cheer as Inuyasha grinned, flying overhead. The return of his friends could not have been better timed.

Still his objective lay out of reach, as the demon clutching the bag dove through Ryukoytsei's rising coils, forcing Inuyasha and Kirara to follow. Great sprays of water bombarded them from every direction as they made their way still closer, ducking and dodging the mighty coiled body of Ryukoytsei.

Finally lifted out of the ocean depth's, the dragon threw back its head and gave a mighty roar that shook the city to its foundations, nearly knocking Inuyasha and Kirara out of the air by the deafening volume alone.

They kept up the pursuit, narrowly missing being snapped up by Ryukoytsei's teeth, each standing taller than Inuyasha was and impossibly sharp. They couldn't close on the demon as it dove, but Inuyasha saw an opening and threw himself from Kirara, diving at the beast. He caught it in his arms as the two of the plummeted below, right into the very temple where Kagome was to be sacrificed. The force of the impact smashed through the ceiling, sending them clattering to the ground. Inuyasha used the slippery beast to cushion his impact, crushing it beneath him as it fell into the flames and he was flung clear.

Along with the bag.

Ryukoytsei locked his great red eyes on the Princess Kagome, intent of making a meal of her, paltry though it would be for such an enormous beast. He roared, rearing back his head to strike.

Body in motion before he could even think, Inuyasha scooped up the bag, knocking aside anyone in his way, be they too stupid to move or too zealous to let him pass. The mad priest tried to stand in his way and Inuyasha knocked him aside with the bag, barely sparing him a glance as he climbed up the wooden dias where Kagome was, sprinting high as he could, one clawed hand reaching into the bag to draw forth its contents. Kagura's still writhing serpent heads bit into his hand as he grabbed tight hold. He reached the tops seconds before Ryukoytsei's jaw reached them, yanking out the gorgon's head.

Kagura's lifeless head opened its eyes, glowing with eldritch light as the serpent heads continued to writhe.

Roaring in defiance, Ryukoytsei's scarlet eyes opened wide, then abruptly covered in stone. The rest of him quickly followed, the mask-like face first, then the brow, the cheeks, the scaly under-belly. Bit by bit the massive dragon of doom began to turn into rock. But on such a massive beast the process took time, and in its pain and agony, Ryukoytsei thrashed and writhed, bits of him breaking off to crash down onto the city, causing yet more ruin and ending more lives. One such fragment struck the raised dias, and Inuyasha stumbled, losing his grasp of the gorgon's head. It tumbled down into the rocks and waves below, as one of the chains binding Kagome did the same, snapping loose. She gave a shriek as she clung to the other one, suspended in the air.

"Inuyasha!" she cried.

He reached for the other chain moments before it snapped, and Kagome fell as well. His hand missed hers by the thinnest of margins, as the princess went crashing down into the waves far below.

Inuyasha tensed his legs to go after her, then paused, sensing that this fight was not yet finished. Instincts screamed of impending danger.

Storm clouds gathered overhead as the multitude of lesser demons flew together, slithering into shadows and re-forming as the dread lord Naraku, who sneered at his hanyou opponent. Inuyasha drew his sword, holding it up as the blade filled in. A growl rose in the back of his throat as he finally beheld his hated enemy.

Naraku, by contrast, looked less than impressed. In fact, he outright chuckled.

"Foolish half-breed. I am a _Demon Lord_. I am a _God_ to you. I will live... _forever_."

Inuyasha just smirked. "Fine... but not here."

Lightning struck as Inuyasha raised up Tetsusaiga high in the air, letting electricity crackle along the blade. The wrath of the father added to that of the son, and Inuyasha hurled the blade through the air. It swung end over end until the three foot long sword buried itself in Naraku's chest, the tip erupting clear out his back as the ancient demon lord was sent hurtling through the air to smash into the dark waters far below. But even that did not stop his flight. Naraku's wicked form flitted through the molten crack in the ocean floor seconds before it sealed shut completely. He was again consigned to the Underworld, this time not only by his brother, but nephew as well.

But he would be back, someday...

* * *

Then Inuyasha dove after Kagome, leaping off the high dias and diving into the water hundreds of feet below, knifing through it with his hands and kicking his legs, chasing after the vision of white drifting deeper into the depths.

He reached her quickly, scooping up her limp form in his arm and quickly rising up to the surface. Kirara landed on the wet sands nearby as Inuyasha carried Kagome ashore and set her down reverently on one of the blackened rocks. She was not breathing...

Then suddenly she gave a great heave, choking out the water, spitting up as her airways cleared, and she looked up at Inuyasha as he gazed down at her in quiet relief. Accepting his hand up, Kagome reclaimed her feet, feeling lighter than she had in days. And the sight on the horizon was an even more joyous one.

"The boats are coming for us," she said.

Inuyasha turned, spotting them easily enough with his keen eyes.

"For you, not for me," he replied.

"You won't stay, will you?" she said, phrasing it more as a statement than a question. He didn't meet her gaze.

"Inuyasha, Edo needs a ruler..." she started to say, but he gently cut her off.

"I can't be a king. I'd serve you better as a man. But I do think I know someone who would make a fine Queen."

Kagome managed a small smile, but it was tinged with sadness from the declining of her offer. She would have preferred he rule by her side. But, his decision was clearly made, she saw that now. It remained to be seen what would come of it.

Inuyasha escorted her back to the palace and to her people. Now that the danger had passed, they were overjoyed to see her back. Some were even celebrating their miraculous survival. In the ensuing confusion, he slipped away quietly, unnoticed by all but one.

* * *

That one found him a short while later on the cliffside where his home was. Where his family had fallen against a demon in the truest sense of the word. They were avenged now. Inuyasha stood on the break between land and sea, watching the waves swell in the distance, watchful and waiting. His ear twitched as he sensed the one stepping up to his side.

Inutaisho paused at his place on Inuyasha's left, also gazing out at the ocean for a moment.

"The Heavens owes you attitude of gratitude. As do I," he finally said.

Inuyasha nodded, though he pointed out one major flaw in their victory. Namely, "Naraku lives."

"He's back in the Underworld," the older demon agreed. "Biding his time, no doubt. Waiting for men to go weakened, and in their weakness he grows stronger."

The two men, so unalike, yet so similar, shared a look.

"It's mankind who holds the key to Naraku' rise, it always was," Inutaisho said.

"So, we'll see him again?" Inuyasha asked.

"Likely, but now the world knows a man who can stop him," his father replied.

Despite himself, Inuyasha almost felt his chest swell a little with pride from his estranged parent.

"Of course... you did have some help," he remarked knowingly. "A sword... a steed..."

Inuyasha rolled his eyes, but he had to admit the elder demon had a point. He hadn't done it alone. Kirara hadn't been seen after the battle, evidently she'd returned home, but Inuyasha was still grateful to her for her aid. And the sword he'd used once again rested at Inutaisho's hip, reclaimed from the Underworld.

"But why help me?" asked the son, not certain he fully understood.

"I wanted men to worship us again, but I didn't want it to cost me a son," Inutaisho explained.

"That's almost human of you," Inuyasha remarked with a grin, not missing the irony.

"I don't suppose you reconsider our offer, to take your place as one of us?"

Slowly shaking his head, Inuyasha simply said, "I have everything I need right here."

"You may not want to be a Demon Lord, Inuyasha. But after feats like yours, men _will_ worship you. Be good to them," he requested kindly, his voice softening. "Be better than we were."

The hanyou nodded, intending to do just that. But it seemed his demonic sire was not quite finished.

"And if you must insist on continuing this... mundane mortal existence... I won't have you do it alone."

Inuyasha just smirked as he turned to watch his father depart, his smile softening as he saw what lay just beside him. Or rather, who.

"You're _my_ son, after all!" Inutaisho declared proudly. And in a flash of lightning and a boom of thunder, Inutaisho departed, back to the realm of demons and gods once more.

And as he left, Inuyasha turned, seeing the other who had accompanied his father. One with the strong cheekbones and large, dark eyes he knew many times over. Kikyo, his ever-present companion. Not only restored, but wholly brought back to life. No longer a collection of bones and dust, but flesh and blood once again. One last gift from the demon lords who ruled over them all.

Inuyasha, however, did not question this blessing, and just hugged Kikyo close in his strong arms. Together, they watched the horizon as the sun began to rise. A new age was dawning, and Inuyasha intended to be a part of it. And to make it a better place.

* * *

 **Authors Notes:  
** If you enjoyed, please review, like and favorite. And thank you all for those already have.


	9. Fathers and Sons

_Many years passed, and the world turned and turned again._

 _Inuyasha followed the path he had promised he would, living as a mortal despite his demonic heritage. Even when the fates took his wife, he would not seek aid from the demon lords in the Heavens. He simply shouldered the burden, buried the grief deep in his heart, and soldiered on._

 _He had little contact with demons in the years since he slew Ryukoytsei, and was quite content with that fact. But the world was ever-changing, and growing ever more dangerous. Whispers of new evils rising reached his ears, despite his efforts to remain ignorant of such things._

 _The son of Inutaisho could not hide from his destiny forever._

* * *

Inuyasha stood on the rocky shore, watching as his son tossed in their line. Only five years old, he was already stronger than most boys his age, tanned like his old man, dark-haired like his mother had been, and fair of feature. When he was older, Inuyasha did not doubt he'd break more than his fair share of hearts.

He'd named him Sota, after his little brother, lost so long ago.

"Now pull it in... that's right, like that," Inuyasha coached his boy. "Go on, I'll tie this off."

"Good catch today dad," Sota said, smiling.

He was right of course. The fish had been returning steadily in the past few years, making their livelihood easier. Inuyasha did not take the blessing lightly, however, and continued to coach his boy to gather as much as they can so they could sell them and store silver for months and years when bounty was harder to come by.

Sota turned as he set a bag of fish aside for skinning, and Inuyasha raised a pale eyebrow as he caught sight of a wooden sword at his side. A primitive thing, more suited for small children, but a sword none-the-less.

"Where'd you get that?"

"Made it myself!" Sota declared proudly.

Inuyasha believed him, but put on a look of mock surprise. "Made it yourself? Heh. Not bad."

"I want to be a good demon when I'm bigger. And do good things."

The grin faded from Inuyasha's face. "There aren't any good demons," he said gently.

"Some of them are," Sota protested. "Like granddad."

"Ah, Sota. There's so much more to life that demons and monsters. Now come on, let's get you back before that old hag gives me an earful."

The two of them walked the short distance to Kaede's hut, the elderly midwife of the village who doubled as a schoolteacher for fishermen's sons and daughters. One-eyed and gray-haired, the old hag (as Inuyasha affectionately referred to her) glared at the father as they made their approach.

"Hey, Kaede... listen, sorry about this, but I uh... needed to borrow Sota for chores so he skipped on studying."

She gave a weary grunt, half-expecting this, and turned, beckoning the young boy in.

"Now you do a good job, and make me proud," Inuyasha said, patting his son on the shoulder.

It was the same farewell he said to Sota every time, and every time he did, Sota promised to be the best he could be so his dad could have reason to be proud of him. Although in truth, there was no need.

Inuyasha was always proud of his son.

* * *

That night, Inuyasha heard thunder on the horizon as he watched the stars come out. Sota had long since been sent to bed, and was slumbering peacefully. But Inuyasha remained restless. Something felt off to him. About the world. He wasn't sure what thought. Thunder rumbled but the skies were clear, devoid of clouds. Then there was that odor. Something in the wind, some scent he couldn't quite place, so subtle and faint it almost wasn't there. But it was.

Then, he felt a presence. Inuyasha almost sighed in disgust, even as he felt his ears and nose twitch. He knew that scent. "I know you're here," he said aloud.

He followed his senses to his sons room, finding their visitor standing beside Sota's bed, peering down at the boy. Sota remained fast asleep, undisturbed by his presence. A tall man in ceremonial armor and white furs, with a mighty sword sheathed at his side and sharp golden eyes. The same golden eyes shared by Inuyasha.

Inutaisho, demon lord, King of the Heavens, and Inuyasha's father.

"I keep watch over him from afar. He's just like his father. A strong willed boy," he said, in his own way seeming to congratulate Inuyasha on his parenting.

"You just passing through?" asked the younger demon, knowing full well it wasn't likely. When demon lords popped up, they tended to meddle.

Evidently this time was no different. His father turned to him, and Inuyasha was struck by how... careworn he looked. Maybe not quite older but... tired. Worn. There seemed to be faint bags under his eyes, and the odd gray hair where none had been before.

"No," Inutaisho replied slowly. "I need your help."

"You're the great demon Inutaisho," his son retorted. "You don't need my help."

He didn't seem to agree. "There is calamity coming. One that will affect us all, demon, human, or hanyou. Mankind has ceased its worship of us..."

"... with good reason..." Inuyasha retorted sharply.

"... but with consequences," his father continued. "Without prayer, we demon lords are losing much of our power. Without belief and faith, we are left vulnerable. And when our power diminishes, all we've worked to create will be undone. All of it."

The ground rumbled, low and ominous, in the distance. Both men turned to look off to the horizon, the dark and terrible night seeming unusually foreboding this evening. Stars still twinkled in the sky, but they were less bright than before. The King of Heaven may have been given to dramatic flair, but it seemed he was not exaggerating the dangers to come.

"The walls of the Cauldron are falling. It is emptying all its monsters onto the earth. The first are already here."

Those words chilled Inuyasha to the bone. He well knew tales of the Cauldron, of the monsters locked away within, so terrible and dangerous even the demon lords had come to fear their power and savagery. Naraku, the Lord of the Underworld, was a timid little hamster demon compared to such horrors.

Nor did it seem Inutaisho was done with his predictions of woe. "If our power diminishes much further, Magatsuhi himself will escape. It will mean chaos, destruction, war... the very end of the world."

The father of all demons. The eldest elder demon lord. Inutaisho's own father, struck down and laid low by his sons. Imprisoned for all time... until now.

But still Inuyasha could not grasp his meaning. His place in all this. "What am I meant to do? This is business for demon lords... not a fisherman."

"We need all our hanyou children now," Inutaisho replied. "Perhaps, together... we can remedy this. Re-forge the Cauldron stronger than ever before it fully breaks. But we need every last scrap of demonic power, Inuyasha.

Inuyasha shook his head. "I will never leave my son." The rest he left unsaid.

"I know your heart better than you know it yourself," Inutaisho replied sagely. "You believe your human half makes you unworthy to join us. But you will learn someday that being a hanyou... being half- _human_... makes you _stronger_ than a full-blooded demon, not weaker."

Uncertain how to respond to that, Inuyasha swallowed thickly before simply saying, "I think you should go."

The King of the Heavens nodded his head, accepting his sons decision. "Sleep well, Inuyasha..."

The older demon took his leave, slipping past his son and outside of the house, out of view. Then there was a flash of lightning and a distant crash of thunder. When it faded, there was no one there any longer. Just the endless night sky and the soft howling of the wind.

Thankfully, the sounds did not disturb Sota, as Inuyasha sat down on his bedside and patted the dark-haired boy as he dreamed of demons and heroes.

* * *

Deep in the bowels of the Underworld, far below the surface of the earth, an unlikely meeting was occurring. Not by virtue of the players involved, for Inutaisho and Choro were brothers, and often met to discuss matters of great demonic concern. No, the unlikeliness came in that they were meeting here, in the Underworld. In the domain of their youngest brother, Lord Naraku.

"Brother," Inutaisho greeted.

The Sea Wolf clasping hands with his bigger canine sibling. "It has been an age," he said, feeling the many decades and centuries on his shoulders heavier than ever before. With their power failing, the demons were starting to show their age, some more quickly than others. Choro's hair was gray as slate and ran long and damp, like freshly infused with saltwater. He wore the gray garments of a sailor, with only a breastplate in the shape of a snarling wolf's head as his only armor. And of course, at his side, the Tenseiga, one of the three strongest demonic weapons in all the world.

Nor was he alone. Beside him stood another member of their party.

Inutaisho bid them a greeting as well. "Sesshoumaru."

Standing tall like Inutaisho, Sesshoumaru carried over much of his features, but on the younger Demon Warlord, they were cold and hard, untampered by mercy or gentleness. Like the King of the Heavens, he too wore armor and a heavy length of pale fur.

"My son," Inutaisho greeted.

Sesshoumaru gave his father a cold look. "Where is my brother... Inuyasha?" he asked, making no effort to conceal his scorn. "Gone fishing?"

"... yes," replied his father, unwilling to lower himself to a pointless argument at this time, so telling something of a half-truth to speed things alike.

"What a brave and noble decision," Sesshoumaru growled, turning to march deeper into the Underworld.

Sighing heavily, Choro followed, and Inutaisho as well, the three demon lords descending still deeper and deeper, far farther than any of them had gone in countless years. Where the light never ventured and there was only darkness. If not for their keen demonic eyes, they would be blind and lost so far from the surface. Finally, however, they reached the very lowest depths of the known world, and entered into a vast cavern. There, in it's very center...

"The Cauldron," Sesshoumaru said coldly. "The great prison of the Underworld."

Magnificent did not describe it, but ominous came close, for it towered higher than any man made castle, hundreds of feet tall, suspended in the air by rocks and stone and demonic magic so powerful it battered at the demon lords souls. So perfect and mighty a prison it had held the most horrible of monsters since time untold... until now.

Now it was time to fix that, before any more damage was done. Now, while they still had the strength to do so. Attempts at finding other demons or hanyou to aid them had all seemed to be miserable failures. Either they could not be found, or they had gone into hiding. Or worse, had already succumbed to the lack of power permeating their kind.

Still their party was exactly one member short, Inutaisho reflected.

"Naraku!" he called out. "We have come to your domain... as agreed! Show yourself to us!"

Then and only then did the Lord of the Underworld appear. He slithered out of shadows and darkness to appear before them. A pale man with long dark hair and distinctive, spiky bone armor, it seemed Naraku had retained much of his demonic power, having spent a lifetime learning to properly harness and conserve it. Feeding on humans fear and despair also did wonders for him during times of turmoil such as these.

"After so many years... the sons of Magatsuhi, together once more," Naraku said mockingly. "Brothers in arms."

"Naraku... you are the great ruler of the Underworld... allow us now entry, so we might rebuild the walls of the Cauldron. Seal it away forever this time."

The red-eyed demon lord pondered his request, or at least seemed to. "My beloved brother," he spoke then. "Who banished me to the Underworld for an eternity... set here to guard our father... now seeks... re _con_ cil _i_ ation." He spat the last word distastefully.

"We must forget the past, little brother... and unite," Inutaisho said.

"... yes," Naraku agreed.

There came an ominous rumbling, as if the Underworld itself shuddered at the thought of such an idea. But that was not what set Inutaisho and Choro on edge, watching their youngest brother with a look of dread.

It was that horrible buzzing sound.

"But on _my_ terms."

The sound grew louder still until a swarm of hellish bees came swarming out of the darkness. Within seconds they'd descended onto the demon lords, forcing Inutaisho and Choro to draw their blades. Thrice as big as ordinary bees and with reddish eyes of evil, these demonic insects went swarming after the older brothers as Naraku laughed cruelly. Drawing their swords, the Tetsusaiga and the Tenseiga, the two of them hacked and slashed at the air, scattering the bees and tear through those who would not move aside, sending purple acidic guts to stain the rocky floor of the Underworld.

Choro fell, pierced by many stingers, and Inutaisho swept the Tetsusaiga in a wide arc, a wave of energy knocking back countless more. Through it all, Naraku watched with a wicked grin, savoring his siblings agony and fear like sweet wine. Inutaisho was determined not to fall, however, and provided cover for his younger brother Choro. An energy whip snapped out, wrapping around his sides, pinning his arms and leaving Inutaisho defenseless as more of the hell-spawned bees smashed into him, knocking him to the ground.

The pale-haired demon lord looked up in astonishment... only to see Sesshoumaru holding the whip's other end. He had betrayed them. Sided with Naraku. Inutaisho could barely process any of this before Sesshoumaru's other hand came around in a savage strike to render his demonic father unconscious.

Then and only then did he deign to look up at his new partner, the dark Lord of the Underworld. Choro had escaped in the confusion, but Naraku was pleased with their real prize. He said as much with three little words.

"It... has... begun...!"

* * *

Indeed it had. For the first of the Cauldron's hellish monstrosities had escaped from its outermost cells, crawling their way to the surface through the myriad tunnels of the Underworld. Four broke free just now from the blackened surface of the earth. Chimaeras, hideous abominations with two skinless heads, one lion, one goat, and the tail of a serpent. On mighty bat-like wings they took to the air, searching for humans to devour. Though they could live for centuries without eating, they craved the sweet taste of man most of all.

One found its way to the fishing village where Inuyasha lived, smashing into the ground and proceeding to tear through its populace and buildings alike. Three heads wreaked havoc in wicked tandem on the simple fishermen of the village. They were not soldiers, they were not trained to kill.

But Inuyasha was.

Growling furiously, he sped towards his household, first making sure Sota was safe and sound. Then he grabbed the table and threw it aside, reaching under the floorboards. Underneath was his old sword, collecting dust from many years left unused.

It was no Tetsusaiga, but it would serve.

Swiftly reaching the homes under siege, Inuyasha hurled himself onto the beasts back, hacking and slashing at anything moving that was not human. The two heads snapped and gnashed their teeth, trying to bite Inuyasha as they threw him from their back, and the snake like tail snapped forward, venomous fangs missing the white-haired hanyou by mere inches before Inuyasha slapped it away with his sword. When it struck next, he did far worse, he cut off the damned head/tail. Hearing the monster scream in agony was music to his ears.

But he wasn't done with it yet, and it was still ferociously powerful.

Finally, Inuyasha saw a pattern to the beast's attacks, and intended to exploit it. The goat head spewed a venom into the air which the lion head then set ablaze. Deadly... but also possibly self-destructive.

Throwing out his arm, he snagged a strong chain from a nearby home, wrapping it around the monster's terrible goat head, binding the horns and yanking it along as he threw himself from its back. A hooked rod meant for anchoring boats Inuyasha also gleefully used to impale the goat head into the ground, letting it writhe in agony as the lion's mouth sparked flames, snapping mighty jaws at the half-demon trying to restrain him.

"Come on!" he shouted. "Burn me! DO IT!"

Roaring, the lion tried to do that, but the angle was all wrong. His teeth snapped at the air, unable to gain a hold of his prey. The chimaera thrashed about, still struggling to break free and kill the hanyou holding it down. Poisonous saliva splattered from the goat's open mouth as it continued to splutter and gasp for air, barely able to breathe.

"What are you WAITING FOR?!" Inuyasha roared.

Finally, the snarling abomination let loose its fiery breath, and Inuyasha released the rope, flinging it back into a pile of its own filthy saliva. It splashed fire over its own body, quickly lighting up the rest of it until the entire beast was ablaze. It howled and roared and snarled and thrashed about, and then finally, mercifully, it died in its own self-inflicted conflagration.

Inuyasha breathed out a sigh of relief as he sunk to his knees. It was finally dead.

But it was only the beginning of something far worse to come, he knew.

* * *

Half the village was in ruin, and many had been killed or seriously wounded, but it could have gone far worse if not for Inuyasha's slaying of the chimaera. Everyone was pitching in to put out the fires and tend to the injured. Meanwhile, the town's savior currently sat in the hut of Kaede as she mended his injuries. He hadn't even realized how badly he'd been hurt until the adrenaline had worn off and he'd realized he'd gotten massive tears along his back and shoulder, to say nothing of his burnt arm from a stray gout of fire. He would heal, but the pain would linger for some time yet.

She did her best to treat him, stitching up his cuts, patching up his tears, soothing his burns with ointment and herbal remedies. But none of that would save him from a much needed tongue lashing.

"Things are happening in the world, Inuyasha," she chided him as she worked. "You know that, you have instincts. You're the son of a demon lord."

He knew all that. But he couldn't just abandon Sota. "A son needs a father. I made a vow to Kikyo," he started to say. She cut him off.

"I know, I know. I was there delivering your son," Kaede reminded him gently. "You vowed to your wife you'd never let Sota wield a sword. That you'd live with him as a simple fisherman until the end of your days."

Inuyasha nodded, well remembering his words.

"Yes, well, that's a fine thing to say in normal times," she continued, tugging on the stitching and making him wince in pain. "But if you have power, you also have a duty."

"Just fix my body, you old hag..." he started to grumble, then winced as she tugged on the stitches again, extra hard. "... _you kind... gentle woman_..." he gasped out before she relaxed her death grip. "... and leave my soul to me."

As if he had any further soul searching to do. No, he'd known the minute that monster had attacked what had to be done. He'd been running from it ever since he'd slain Ryukoytsei. But there was no point in denying it any longer. He was a hanyou, the son of Inutaisho. Demonic blood flowed through his veins.

This war was as much his as it was theirs.

* * *

 **Authors Notes:  
** Of the many roles adapted between the two mediums, I'm least satisfied with Sota's. True, it allows for a connection to Kagome later, but that seems to be the only use. I almost considered Shippo for the role of Helios, but decided he'd be either too useful or too annoying, so I used Sota instead. And included a blink-and-you'll-miss-it naming of Inuyasha's adopted brothers as Sota so there would be a reason for giving the name to his son.


	10. Allies Old and New

Not even a day later Inuyasha and Sota were hiking through the hills, heading towards the Mount of Fuji. Apart from the Heavens, easily the highest peak in the world. At its base there was a temple dedicated to the demon lords and their worship. This is where Inuyasha would hopefully contact his father and get some answers.

When they arrived, however, they found the place in ruin. Once it held twelve great statues to the twelve great demon lords. As well as many smaller shrines to their numerous lesser demonic minions, vassals and servants and the like. Now many were little more than a pair of broken feet, scattered marble, cracked stone. A few still stood tall but they no longer stood proudly. They were ancient, broken, ready to fall. Much like the time of the demon lords themselves, this place was coming to an end.

Still, it was not empty. Inuyasha caught sight of movement by the statues of the three brothers. An older man with graying hair and a breastplate bearing the image of a wolf's face. Inuyasha recognized him instantly. How could he not? If ever there was a demon lord who watched over fishermen and sailors, it was the Sea-Wolf. Plus, it helped he was standing right beside the ruined statue of his own self.

"Choro!"

The older demon stumbled, and Inuyasha caught him seconds before he fell. He was badly battered and bruised, having obviously been in a terrible fight. And it did not look like one he had won either.

"What happened?" asked Inuyasha.

"Naraku and Sesshoumaru... they've joined Magatsuhi..." Choro said. "Sided against humanity. The other demon lords... they're all gone..."

"Where's my father?" demanded Inuyasha.

"Captured," Choro replied weakly. " _You_ must journey to the Underworld... and free him."

This stunned Inuyasha, who despite his misgivings had always held his father to be nigh invincible. "They took my father?" he asked.

Choro nodded sadly, his wolfish ears drooping as strength continues to fade from his form. "You're the only hope left in this world. You must do this... or there will be nothing but oblivion."

"How? I'm only one hanyou."

"Then you must find another... Koga... you must find... Koga..."

"Whose Koga?" asked Inuyasha. He didn't recognize the name.

"He's my son. He's with Queen Kagome, in Edo. Tell him to take you to the Fallen One."

He stiffened, the old wolf feeling his life slipping away even faster now. But he found enough strength to draw the Tenseiga, at his hip, and offer it hilt first to Inuyasha. He recognized it instantly, the metalwork was the same as the Tetsusaiga, the blade he'd once wielded before.

"Take this," Choro implored him. "If my son... survives and... proves worthy... give it... to... him..."

His last breath finished the sentence, and not a moment too soon. His face was turning ashen. No, not ashen. To dust. Choro was crumbling away, faster by the second, until he'd turned into little more than gray fragments of stone. His body crumbled away into powder on the floor as the last of his strength faded, leaving Inuyasha to gape stupidly at the sight before him.

Choro had been an elder demon, one of the very oldest, only his father and his elder brother Inutaisho had been older. Yet he had been somehow struck a blow that could only be described as mortal. The nature of the game played by men and demons had changed.

Even the demon lords could die now.

* * *

 _"_ My own son betrays me."

Sesshoumaru's face may have been sculpted from marble for all the feeling expressed there. His gaze was cold as he glared at his sire, bound in heavy chains and scarcely able to move. "Only when it suits you, you remember I am your son."

Seeing no mercy to be found there, Inutaisho turned to the other present, hoping for a better response. "Naraku," Inutaisho pleaded. "Don't do this..."

His pleas fell on ears long deaf to mercy. "You're sweating like a human, brother. Next, it'll be tears."

"Don't waste words on him," Sesshoumaru advised. "Magatsuhi is waiting..."

"What?"

"Our father has offered us a deal," Naraku explained. He would have gone into greater detail, but Inutaisho growled darkly.

"You fool!"

Annoyed at the interruption, Naraku went on. "If we help him to escape the Cauldron... he has agreed to allow we few demon lords to retain our power and our immortality. We will serve at his side... as he brings forth a new order to the world."

"No!"

Sesshoumaru lashed out with a casual backhand, striking with such force his father's head was knocked to the side.

"Let him speak," Naraku commanded. The Demon Warlord spared him barely a glance.

"Are you becoming weak, Naraku?" asked Sesshoumaru mildly. Not quite a challenge, but only by a hair's span.

"You're in the Underworld, Sesshoumaru, where it's wise to obey me," Naraku reminded him, scarlet eyes boring into Sesshoumaru's golden ones. The same shade he shared with his father... and his half-brother.

"You forget our father once tried to kill us?" Inutaisho reminded his brother.

"Of course not," Naraku replied testily. "No, I remember everything quite distinctly."

"And what exactly does our father want from us in return for our precious immortality?

"We simply offer him the last of your demonic powers so that he may free himself.

The absurdity of it all nearly brought Inutaisho to laughter. "Oh, Naraku... what have I done to you?"

"You laugh as if you had a choice," the Lord of the Underworld said, as if explaining to a child. "There _is_ no choice."

Inutaisho scarcely paid a glance over his shoulder at the hundreds of lesser demons holding onto his chains. Such numbers would send most humans into a panic, and indeed, even he might be hard pressed to battle so many all at once. None the less, he only said, "I hope you have enough of them."

"Bring him," Naraku commanded.

The myriad lesser demons pulled, but Inutaisho was stubborn, and a demon lord besides. He planted his feet and held on grimly with what strength he had left. He would not go willingly, but fight tooth and claw until the very end.

* * *

The next day saw Inuyasha back in his old robes. Red as blood, they were sewn from the fur of the fire rat and stronger than steel. As well as resistant to fire. A gift from the old King of Edo, before his untimely demise at the hands of his own people. He hadn't worn them in many years, yet they still fit perfectly. Stepping out of his home, Inuyasha looked every bit like the hero others saw him as. But none thought more so than his own son, Sota, who was there to see him off. Nor was he the only one.

A great striped cat of black and white, bigger than a horse, dropped out of the sky on flaming paws, landing on the outskirts of the village the two of them called home. Sota watched in awe at the sight of the great beast, but Inuyasha only smiled. An old friend was back. Kirara, last of the great demon cats. He hadn't seen her since the slaying of Ryukoytsei. Yet the great shaggy beast had never looked better.

"That's Kirara," Sota said in awe, greatly daring to approach. Great red eyes without malice watched his approach, as Inuyasha coaxed his son forward.

"Here, like this," Inuyasha said, demonstrating for Sota. A gentle scratch underneath Kirara's chin, eliciting a mighty purr from the great cat.

Sota copied the motion, and Kirara leaned into the touch.

"Heh... he likes you," Inuyasha remarked. "Me, on the other hand... well... I'm your father. And I love you. And I'm coming back."

"I love you too dad," Sota replied. "I'll keep up with my studies and my chores while you're gone."

"You better," Inuyasha said with a grin, tugging gently on the scruff of Kirara's neck and coaxing her to ride. With a great roar, the last of the great demon cats let her paws become engulfed in fire, and leapt into the air, prowling across the open sky as easily as a horse would gallop across an open field.

* * *

They rode across Japan towards Edo, but midway to their destination they saw a sight to draw their attention. The city had been emptied of its armies, which formed phalanx after phalanx in defensive rows around the cities borders. Inuyasha saw signs of recent battle, the earth was scorched and blackened, and the smell of blood was thick in the air. Knowing Princess Kagome (now Queen) as he did, he knew he wouldn't find her hiding in her fancy palace during a time when her people were in danger. No, she'd be here, on the battlefield. Right in the thick of it.

So he angled Kirara around and descended towards the main tent.

It was fortunate he overheard someone yelling "hold your fire" as he descended to the ground, because it seemed in all the confusion he'd been mistaken for another demonic attacker by the rightfully scared soldiers of Edo. Inuyasha had no desire to start out the day with a fight.

Kagome was there, looking more radiant than ever. Dark of hair and pale of skin, she bore more than a passing resemblance to his dead wife Kikyo, so much so they might have been twins were they ever able to stand side-by-side with one another. But whereas Kikyo had been calm and collected, gentle and nurturing, Kagome was a woman of passion and strength. She did not sit idly by while things needed doing, she did them, and damn the consequences. These days she wore the white and red robes of a priestess, a quiver at her side, a bow slung over her back. A breastplate of hardened leather covered her chest, and it was obvious even from a distance to see the mark of battle upon her face. Something no amount of washing or healing could completely wipe away.

Descending back onto the ground, Inuyasha dismounted Kirara and stood on shaky legs. It had been some time since he'd flown like that, evidently he still wasn't quite used to it. A senior soldier came to welcome him to the camp. Either he'd been recognized or the man had been informed of whom he was.

"All hail Inuyasha, slayer of Ryukoytsei."

Other soldiers watched in awe, some even descending to their knees. They quickly picked up the cheer.

"Hail Inuyasha! Great Inuyasha!"

Rolling his eyes and trying not to seem too ungrateful for their worship, though he did not want or need it, Inuyasha bid them rise, turning to the approaching man wearing a general's armor. He looked very young for a general, scarcely older than Inuyasha had been when he'd slain Ryukoytsei, but his gaze was clear and his voice firm. He introduced himself as Hojo.

"If it is action you're after, you are a little late," General Hojo said by way of greeting.

"I'm just here to see Queen Kagome," Inuyasha replied.

"And the queen is glad to see to you as well," Kagome said, approaching with a smile on her face. She hadn't seen Inuyasha in over five years. And it had done nothing to dim her desire to do so.

Inuyasha dipped his head politely. "Your majesty."

* * *

They retired to Kagome's command tent, allowing both of them a chance to become re-acquainted, even as Kagome used a bowl of water to wash her face and make herself more presentable. She was fresh from battle against demonic invaders, and it had not gone as well as she had hoped. Kirara, now shrunk to her housecat form, was lapping at a saucer of milk nearby while they spoke.

"You've obviously been in your own battles, Inuyasha," Kagome said, noticing his still-healing injuries. "I've been busy with mine."

"Yeah, you have," he said, examining the map on the nearby table. "I won't keep you."

"It's been too long," she protested. "I don't mind."

"I have a son now."

"I know. I'd like to meet him," she said with a warm smile.

"And my wife, she..."

"I know. I'm so sorry, Inuyasha," Kagome said, gently laying her hand over his.

His fingers curled around hers, squeezing gently, savoring the warmth of her hand. Lifting his gaze, Inuyasha's eyes met Kagome's, gazing into her clear vision. It would have lingered longer, had not her general cleared his throat to get her attention.

"Your Majesty. For the sake of the men, we must resolve our differences before sunset," he said.

"I made it clear we will continue to fight... these invaders."

"Today in the field we lost 300 men... for the death of three Chimera," Hojo reminded her. "A great loss."

"We have offended the demon lords," another of the soldiers added, a pint-sized demon with green scales and beady yellow eyes by the name of Jaken. "We need to pray for their forgiveness so we might end this."

Inuyasha glanced over at Kagome, who shrugged her shoulders. Lesser demons were occasionally permitted to join her city, so long as they meant well and served in the same capacity as any citizen. It seemed this Jaken was one of them, though he seemed ill-suited for a soldiers life.

"Pray to whom?" Inuyasha asked. "Sesshoumaru?"

"O-o-of course!" replied Jaken quickly. "As soldiers we have always honored him!"

"What if I were to tell you that Sesshoumaru is our enemy now? _Your_ enemy?"

"I-I-I- w-would try to... uhm... make peace with Lord Sesshoumaru," the little toad replied.

Inuyasha barked a laugh at that. "You would make peace with the _Demon Warlord_?"

"Inuyasha," Kagome interrupted, her voice carrying steel. Toad or not, Jaken was one of her soldiers, and she did not appreciate their faith being mocked. "You've been told of our troubles. We've heard of yours. What strategy do you propose?"

He relented. "There's a way we can end this, and then I can get home."

"How?"

"I need to speak to someone in Edo. A man called Koga."

Kagome blinked in surprise. "Koga?" she asked, in a tone that left little doubt she recognized the name.

"You know him?"

"... unfortunately."

* * *

Though a center of peace and prosperity in the modern world, Edo was not perfect. While it enjoyed few law-breakers, it did indeed contain a dungeon in its palace to hold miscreants and trouble-makers who threatened or troubled the royal family. Inuyasha remembered them well. He'd been a prisoner here himself once, briefly.

But the man they were dragging out of his cell in chains hadn't been a prisoner back then. Inuyasha definitely would've remembered him. Ragged and scruffy, dark-haired and piercing green eyes, this man was heavily tanned and lined with muscles from a hard life of work in the open sun. He wore dark animal pelts, probably bear fur, and his feet were bare, hard and calloused.

His spirit evidently hadn't been broken by his stay, despite his disheveled appearance. He was positively grinning as soon as he saw who had come to get him.

"Oh well, the Queen herself. So good to see you again, Kagome," he said. "You're looking lovely as ever."

She brushed away his kind greeting dismissively. "This is Koga," she explained to Inuyasha. "He's a liar and a thief."

"I only lied about being a thief. Mostly. Look, I know things didn't work out between us... but really, you have to try and get over it," he said. Catching sight of Inuyasha behind her, his tone shifted as he turned his conversation on the other hanyou. "Ever had a woman love you so much she locked you up like some pet dog?"

Inuyasha snorted, both at the idea that Kagome was the responsible one here, and the mental imagery. He hated this guy already and he'd barely met him.

"He wanted my hand in marriage," Kagome explained her side of the events, which sounded a lot more true to Inuyasha. "When I refused, he tried to run away with the crown and half our treasury."

"I think it's my eyes," Koga kept on, completely ignoring her. "Extraordinary, they are. Don't you think?"

They were, actually. Inuyasha noticed it right away. Koga had the same shade and color as Choro. A faded grayish-blue like the ocean waves themselves. "Actually, you got the eyes of your father," he said.

That quickly sobered up the chained thief. His joking demeanor vanished instantly.

"Do you know his father?" asked Kagome, puzzled by the change in her prisoner. If she'd known how to shut him up like that she'd have done it months ago.

"Yeah, Koga here... he's the son of the great demon Choro. The Sea Wolf."

Koga threw back his head and laughed at that. "I dunno where your boyfriend gets his delusions from..."

"We're related by blood," Inuyasha interrupted. "I'm the son of Inutaisho. That makes us cousins. And fellow hanyou."

He finally stopped laughing, his expression becoming smugly grim. "If my father sent you... then I definitely don't want anything to do with you."

"Your father's dead," Inuyasha said bluntly.

It was worth the look on Koga's face. Shock wasn't enough to properly convey it, though he quickly covered that up with a look of denial. "... that's impossible. He was an elder demon. They don't just... _die_."

"They do now."

"... good to know," the wolf hanyou finally managed to spit out. "Mind doing me a favor?"

Inuyasha raised one silver brow.

"Go to Hell," Koga spat out darkly. Now it was Inuyasha turn to laugh.

"That's exactly where I'm going... but I need information. Now your old man told me... that you could help me get to the Fallen One."

If Inuyasha was hoping that name would make Koga more pliant to his request, he was sadly mistaken. The dark-haired hanyou looked ready to tear off his chains and then go for Inuyasha's throat next. Probably steal away Kagome for good measure. So he tried a different tactic.

"You long for the ocean, don't you? It's like a thirst you cannot quench. It must be hell for you in here, locked up, so far from the sea..." Inuyasha taunted, grinning as he watched the wolf hanyou squirm.

It didn't take him long to come up with a decision.

"I want a royal pardon."

Kagome quickly agreed. "Granted."

Amazed at his condition being met so quickly, Koga went for more. "And I want my weight in gold."

"Granted," she replied just as quickly. "Shouldn't be more than a few gold coins, you're so scrawny."

"Let me see... what else have I dreamt of as I lay here in my cell?" Koga breathed, clearly intending to make his next wish for Kagome serve out a life as his personal love slave.

"Don't push it," Inuyasha advised, shoving on the other hanyou's shoulder to get him into motion.

"I'm gonna need a boat," Koga went on. " _We_ are gonna need a boat. The Fallen One does live across the ocean."

"Where?"

"Put me on the deck and I'll show you," the wolf hanyou replied evenly.

Inuyasha glanced at Kagome, who nodded.

That settled that then.

* * *

As Koga was dragged in chains to their vessel, the Iron Reaver, Kagome issued out orders to her remaining forces, ensuring they would be prepared for the brief interlude. She had insisted upon going with Inuyasha and Koga on this quest, and would brook no arguments. Not from them, not from her generals, not from the demon lords on high themselves. Once she set her mind in something, Kagome did it.

"Send word to every regiment that's still intact," she commanded, outlining her plan to General Hojo. "Have them meet us... here... at the Broken Pass. If I'm not there in two days... then you can pray."

"... your majesty," Hojo complied, stepping aside to start issuing her orders.

Climbing onto the boat and setting sail with Koga and Inuyasha, Kagome came across the two hanyou standing at the bow of the ship. They'd cleared the harbor and the wind was picking up. It was time to start putting in for their destination, which she admit she didn't fully understand was.

"Our course?" she asked.

Inuyasha glanced over at Koga.

"Unchain him," he commanded. "And you... show me where the Fallen One is."

"Who _is_ the Fallen One?" Kagome inquired. She never did get that fact straightened out.

"Oh, old man Totosai," Koga replied.

"And who's Totosai?"

Inuyasha wasn't surprised she didn't know. It wasn't exactly common knowledge. Indeed, if not for his talks with his father, he himself would've been ignorant of such things. "Totosai was once one of the great demon lords of the Heavens. He was the smith who forged Choro's Tenseiga... Naraku's Sou'unga... and Inutaisho's Tetsusaiga. When the three swords are put together... they form the Blade of Trinity, the weapon the demon lords used to defeat Magatsuhi."

"But Totosai lives on the Island of Hakurei," Koga added.

"Which no man has ever found."

The wolf hanyou laughed at the irony of that statement. Oh this day just got better and better, as far as he was concerned. These people, these land-dwellers, truly had no idea.

"Hakurei doesn't exist, does it, Koga?" Inuyasha said, phrasing it as a matter of fact.

He just grinned like a wolf. "Oh it does. And I can take you. Just unchain me and give me the sword," he said casually, like he was asking for Inuyasha to pass some water.

"You chain him, he'll be overboard in minutes," Kagome warned. "And we'll never see him again."

Inuyasha held no doubts she might've been right. However, there was entirely too much at stake not to take a gamble. And he'd be lying if he didn't feel some form of kinship with the other hanyou. Their fathers had abandoned them, but they had grown strong in their own ways because of their human blood as much as their demonic heritage. He undid Koga's chains, and the dark-haired man shrugged them off easily.

"Don't let our family down," Inuyasha requested, placing the sword in Koga's hand.

He, in turn, just grinned, raising up the blade as if he meant to strike someone down... then burying it in the prow of the ship. The whole vessel shuddered under the demonic power.

Tenseiga glowed with an eldritch light, pulsating with power as Koga grimly held on to the hilt, breathing out slowly. Under the influence of the sword and the demonic power behind it, the boat began to turn, turn, turn, until finally coming to a halt then pressing on. They needed no wind to sail, the power of the Sea Wolf pressed them onwards to their destination.

"Not bad, Koga... not bad."

* * *

 **Authors Notes:  
** Obviously, had to tweak Koga into a half-demon for this story instead of a full-blood like his in canon, but overall he's the same lovable character. Originally hadn't intended to have Jaken in this story, but later found room for him. Leaving the only main character I was unable to find a role for Shippo.


	11. Tears for Fears

In the deepest, darkest depths of the Underworld, where the Cauldron lay, the most terrible and unholy of monsters were imprisoned. Demons so strong and horrific their very existence was a threat to all living things. These were not like the demon lords, refined, controlled, if arrogant. These were unthinking brutes and beasts that sought only to kill and destroy.

This is where Inutaisho had been taken. Finally they had managed to drag him here, inch by inch, until he could no longer fight back. Shackled to the rocks before Magatsuhi, very like a mortal offering to the demon lords of old. The irony was not lost on him.

His father still slumped petrified on his stone throne, primarily dormant for the time being, but growing stronger and more aware all the time.

"Great Magatsuhi. Father," breathed Naraku, trembling to his very bones.

By contrast, his partner may have been carved from rock. "We have delivered Inutaisho, your son... as you ordered," Sesshoumaru added when Naraku faltered.

"IIINUUUTAAIISSSHOOOO..." rumbled Magatsuhi. The father of all demons. The First Demon. The sound of his voice seemed to echo off the cavern walls. And for the first time in decades, even centuries, Inutaisho knew a great, terrible fear.

* * *

Guided by the power of the Tenseiga and the son of the Sea-Wolf, it did not take long for the Iron Reaver to reach their destination. The Island of Hakurei, the home of the Fallen One. It took only slightly longer to bring the vessel into an inlet and weigh anchor, then go ashore in the boats. Hakurei was a densely forested island, full of hilly forests and thick foliage. If the Fallen One was indeed here, he might be difficult to find immediately. There was almost no sign of civilization to be found. No port, no docks, not even the familiar, welcome sight of fishermen.

Inuyasha led the way, Koga and Kagome close behind, a contingent of soldiers from Edo at their back, numbering no more than a dozen or so. A small, swift group. And hopefully their skills at fighting and killing would not be needed.

As if they could be so lucky.

"Fallen One should be this way," Koga said, following a track of water upstream.

"What makes you say that?" inquired Kagome.

"Regular demons can wander as they see fit, but a demon _lord_ banished has to live as close to the Heavens as possible," he explained. "High ground is that way."

It made sense, but it didn't make travelling that way any easier. Especially once Inuyasha started to discover the traps. Overturned trees and clusters of branches slowly became more and more obvious in their design as cages and pitfalls, or else catapults and battering rams. The closer they got to the peak, the more and more they saw signs of death traps. It was obvious the Fallen One had little interest in entertaining guests.

And then one of the soldiers tripped a wire (Inuyasha was pretty sure it was Jaken), and the whole forest sprung into action, ropes lifting off the ground and weights and pullies falling and descending into position. If whoever set the traps didn't know they were here by now, they soon would.

"I can't see anything!" one of the soldiers proclaimed.

"We should pray to the Demon Warlord," Jaken said, reaching for his prayer beads.

"No!" protested Inuyasha, tempted to tear them from his hand.

Kagome stepped between them, defusing the situation more gently. "No praying. I know it is custom, but no matter what we're about to face, you do not pray to Lord Sesshoumaru. If you do, he will find us... and he will kill us."

Jaken obediently put his prayer beads away and steadied his staff, while the other warriors drew their swords and advanced. Now very much on their guard, they kept careful watch over the ground for any other nasty surprises.

"Stay alert," Inuyasha warned.

A rope snapped as a wire was tripped, and everyone turned to find the culprit. It was the dark-haired hanyou Koga. Everyone froze as several more weights dropped down from their perches, one landing uncomfortably close to Kagome, nearly crushing her flat as she scrambled out of the way. Whether by accident or design wasn't important. It underlined just how dangerous this whole area was. Inuyasha turned on his fellow hanyou with a harsh reprisal.

"Koga, careful!"

"I'm being careful, mutt!"

"The most important thing here is to _do nothing_."

The other hanyou nodded, tightening his grip on the Tenseiga in his hand but otherwise making no move. However, this did not stop the ropes from spring into motion again seconds later, fallen tree branches springing up around Koga to engulf him in a makeshift cage. Within seconds he was trapped between the bars of wood. He could have torn them apart with ease, but he cringed at what might happen if he moved again.

"KOGA!"

"I DIDN"T DO ANYTHING! I DIDN'T EVEN MOVE!" the wolf hanyou protested, seconds before he was hauled up into the air. Now his cage was suspended high off the ground, easily a dozen feet or so. Well out of reach of the soldiers of Edo and Inuyasha.

Kagome rolled her eyes, feeling a headache coming on. "Cut the counterweights, bring the dumb wolf down..."

"NO!" Koga shouted, not liking the idea of that at all.

"No he's right," agreed Inuyasha. "The fall would kill him..."

There was a crash off in the distance, muffled and low-pitched. But they all heard it. Another trap? No, a second one followed it. Then a third. Not traps... footsteps. BIG footsteps. Koga, with his newfound height, could see what was causing them first... and abruptly found that dying in a collapsing cage would be a preferably fate.

"CUT THE COUNTERWEIGHT!" Koga cried, suddenly very much afraid.

And his fear only grew worse as one of the ropes holding his cage snapped, and it was suddenly dragged through the air along another towards whatever was approaching. Inuyasha would have been impressed by the engineering quality of these traps... if his cousin by blood wasn't being dragged towards them to be killed or worse. He and several of the soldiers took off after him as quickly as they could. Doing their best to avoid more traps was tricky, but they managed.

They lost sight of Koga, but something else was moving in the fog between the trees. Something _big_.

"Kagome, slow it down!" Inuyasha instructed, taking a wide route around in the hopes of finding Koga.

Nodding, Queen Kagome ordered her troops to fall into a defensive position, trusting Inuyasha to rescue Koga (and if not, no great lost). "Archers," she whispered, nodding to her men and women as they readied their bows. Herself amongst them. Ever since she'd been taken captive and planned as a sacrifice to Ryukoytsei, Kagome had spent many long hours practicing with the bow and arrow. She was determined never to be a damsel in distress again. And it showed, her aim was top notch.

They would need it, because marching out of the fog and shadows between the trees was a brute of a giant, standing nearly twenty-five feet tall and covered in mottled reddish skin. Two baleful red eyes peered out of the gloom for its prey, while its mouth was crammed full of jagged yellow teeth. An Oni demon.

Jaken gave a strangled squeak, feeling his short legs quiver in fear. "Lord Sesshoumaru..." he whispered, reaching for his prayer beads.

They were smacked out of his hand by Kagome. "NO... PRAYER..." she whispered as loudly as she dared, glaring at him with such a dark look he was unsure for an instant if he feared the oni or Kagome more.

When the Oni had passed, Kagome gave the order.

"ATTACK!"

Bows twanged as arrows filled the air, thudding into the beast's back one after the other. Two soldiers went charging forward with swords swinging. But so intent were they on fighting the first Oni, they completely missed the second one... until he was right on top of them. This one had a shade of skin closer to faded blue, but otherwise looked identical to its monstrous brother.

An arrow thudded into the beast's neck, fired purely out of shock. But this was all the provocation it needed to come smashing into their makeshift fortification, sending soldiers scattering in all directions. One particularly unlucky soul was caught off guard by a swinging club bigger than a tree trunk, sending him smashing into another tree with enough force to snap him in half. He was dead before he hit the ground.

He then proceeded to pursue Kagome and Jaken, who slid down into a nearby crevice for safety, hoping to keep out of sight. Taking advantage of their smaller sizes, they used the tree branches and natural barriers to keep away from their much bigger, slower opponent.

Alas, they miscalculated.

He practically uprooted the tree with his bare hands, exposing Kagome and Jaken. She knocked an arrow, aiming at his face, ready to fight when a sound came off in the distance. A howl of agony, so loud it could have only come from another of the Oni. The one glaring down at her lifted his head, glanced back briefly at the two of them, then took off to help its ally. Inuyasha must have found the first one. Or it he. Either way, Kagome had to get to his side now. She ran across the broken forest floor, Jaken flailing his arms as he scurried after her as quickly as his little legs could carry him.

* * *

Inuyasha sped through the forest at frightening pace, but even so, he'd lost sight of Koga. He could tell the Oni wasn't far behind either. The earth shook under each of its thunderous footsteps.

Skidding to a halt moments before he hit another trip wire and triggered another of their wretched traps, Inuyasha cast his gaze left and right, up and down, looking for an answer. Taking down a behemoth like the Oni wouldn't be easy, but he was determined to try. Then, finally, he spotted something useful. A weighted log that looked primed in a position to serve as a battering ram, right at the height of the Oni's head. It's doubtful it was designed as such, more likely it was another counterweight, but even so, Inuyasha decided to make use of it.

Drawing his sword and turning back to face the beast, he planted his feet and readied himself for its attack. "Alright you ugly brute, come and get me!" he snarled.

The Oni stomped over to him, red eyes blazing like twin fires as he reared back a club big as a tree branch. Smashing it against the ground, he narrowly missed Inuyasha as the white-haired hanyou dove to one side, rolling to his feet moments later. Equally he avoided the second strike, and then a third, drawing his enemy back into the position he wanted him.

Unfortunately, the next strike cuffed Inuyasha's shoulder as he tried to dodge, knocking him off-balance and making him lose his sword. The brute lost his tree branch in the process, but he proceeded to smash his hand down instead. His sheer size and strength would be enough to finish off the hanyou who'd invaded his home.

"Okay, this may have been a bad idea," Inuyasha growled, lunging forward to grab his blade, tilting it up seconds before the mighty hand descended on him, ramming the sharp tip up between the palm.

The Oni roared in pain, then applied his second hand to the first, pushing downwards. Despite the injury to himself, he was determined to smash the annoying intruder on his island. Inuyasha grabbed the hilt with his other hand as well, keeping the weight of both hands off and the blade firm. Their strength was almost evenly matched, though the Oni had size and leverage on his side. Inuyasha would have lost in a contest of endurance, but thankfully there was no need for one. Unlike the Oni, Inuyasha had back-up close at hand.

Two of the soldiers threw ropes around the Oni's legs and knees, binding him tightly and putting off balance, just as Inuyasha reached back with a free hand for the tripwire. Pulling the rope, Inuyasha sprung the trap.

A weighted log came flying through the air just as the giant Oni stood back up, smacking him right in his hideous face. Stunned by the blow and caught in the soldiers ropes, he went tumbling down in seconds, flat on his back. Taken out by his own trap. The irony was delicious, as was the taste of victory.

Inuyasha climbed onto the fallen Oni and pointed his sword right at the beast's throat, making no effort to conceal that if he didn't get an answer he liked, the brute was bound on the next boat for the afterlife.

"Where's my cousin?" he demanded.

The second of the oni returned to protect his companion, and a third joined them moments later, carrying Koga slung upside down by his ankles on his belt. Growling, Inuyasha again pointed the Tenseiga at the first Oni's throat. A trade seemed in order, one family member for another. But this was not necessary.

A fourth Oni, green of skin and wrinkled with age, called out in a strange tongue. It sounded like he was ending their dispute, gazing at Inuyasha at undisguised awe. No, not Inuyasha himself. The sword.

Unable to resist a quip, Inuyasha smiled up at his hanyou cousin. "Glad to see you're hanging in there, Kora."

Koga rolled his eyes. "Yeah yeah, har har, very funny. Can you get me down now?"

"Let's find out what our new friends think," replied Inuyasha, sparing a glance at the Oni.

Evidently they were amicable. Though they still couldn't piece together all the words they used (their language was strange and guttural), they did recognize 'Choro' shortly after Koga was set back down on his feet. Evidently they did recognize the Tenseiga, and it's former owner. Inuyasha was either being mistaken for him, or his champion. Either way, it seemed the Oni were allies. Very strange, very _large_ allies, but allies none the less.

He sheathed the demonic weapon, its purpose was served.

"Can you take us to the Fallen One?" Inuyasha asked politely.

* * *

Deep in the Underworld, Sesshoumaru was working to test the bindings of his father, ensuring there would be no chance of Inutaisho escaping before the ceremony was completed. If he happened to be getting a little rough in the treatment of his father, surely there was no harm in that. He would be dead soon before long anyway.

Inutaisho, however, saw right through his supposedly cautious testing of the binds. Sesshoumaru wasn't worried he'd escape. He was worried he'd be dead before he got a chance to properly suffer. His rage was a weakness, as was his arrogance. Inutaisho wondered if perhaps there was a way to exploit that, so he tried a tentative jab to see what made his eldest son tick. "Poor Sesshoumaru... always following orders," he taunted. Sesshoumaru tugged tighter on the chains, wrenching a groan from his weakened father.

"I am my own master," he declared coldly.

"Yes, of course you are," agreed Inutaisho with no small amount of sarcasm. "Perhaps it's only humans... that have free will."

Such a notion did not sit easily with the Demon Warlord, and he disliked being reminded of his failings. Or his sibling. He answered the unspoken challenge, striking his father across the face.

"There!" he growled, punctuating his words with further blows from his mighty fists. "Pain! You love humans so much? This is your first lesson in being human!"

Another strike, across the jaw, with such force Inutaisho's head would have shattered, had he been mortal. His head lolled to the side, blood trickling down his lip.

"Perhaps you should weep, like your favored son, Inuyasha," Sesshoumaru said coldly, turning his back on his father.

"If I weep... it will be for you, Sesshoumaru."

Rage flitted across the white-haired man's face, and his hand came up again, a beam of green energy lashing out to strike Inutaisho as he lay helpless. But the demon warlord was far from done, whipping his father's legs and arms and body, ready to flay him down to his wretched bones...!

"ENOUGH."

Naraku's voice commanded respect, and Sesshoumaru did as he was bade, the energy whip dissipating instantly.

"We are in this together, Naraku," the Demon Warlord reminded him darkly. "Do not weaken on me now."

"Your weakness is your blind hatred..." Naraku countered. "For your father and your brother. You don't know when to stop fighting. Even when you've already won."

His words rang with a terrible truth, for as they watched, the chains around Inutaisho's limbs began to glow with an unholy light, twisting and turning like molten rock. And with them, the King of the Heavens was slowly being drained of his might and majesty. His demonic aura weakened bit by bit.

"Magatsuhi is draining Inutaisho's demonic power," the Lord of the Underworld said, watching with an almost gleeful grin.

Naraku had spoken truth. He and Sesshoumaru had won.

They had only to wait now... until the very end.

* * *

With the Oni now leading them, Inuyasha, Koga, and Kagome made good time, followed by the soldiers of Edo. Ascending the hill was much easier and quicker when one did not have to worry about traps, and since the Oni had designed and built them, they invariably knew their way around. Safe paths few others could find without stumbling about blindly. They were almost to the home of the Fallen One.

Half-expecting a grand palace, or at least some sort of building or tower, they found instead only a hole in the side of the mountain. A cave wherein dwelled the Fallen One, according to their Oni guides. Inuyasha did not keep the incredulous look off his face, but their Oni guided insisted. This was where they found the Fallen One.

Shrugging, Inuyasha at least took it as a sign that this demon lord wouldn't be as stuck up as the other's he'd met in the past. They might even be a reasonable sort to deal with.

 _Yeah right_ , he thought. _When have I ever been that lucky_?

They descended into the darkness, hoping to find answers and aid. But having no idea what they had walked into.

* * *

 **Authors Notes:  
** I don't have anything against Sesshoumaru, or Ares really, but in the movie he was the villain, and so that's the role he has to play. At least he does it well.


	12. Another Way In

A voice echoed out of the darkness.

"Inutaisho?! Sesshoumaru! Naraku! At last, I knew you'd come! Choro, you old wolf, I can see your sword! Aha...!"

Evidently whoever it was thought they were the Demon Lords. Inuyasha raised an eyebrow in disbelief.

This belief was quickly dispelled, however.

"... it's not them!" the voice proclaimed. A man became visible in the gloom, elderly, stooped, with large bug-like eyes and a thin face. A scraggle of beard drifted downwards from his chin, and he wore the threadbare green robes of a smith.

"We're looking for Totosai... the maker of demonic weapons," Inuyasha said.

The old man blinked owlishly at Inuyasha, as if not really seeing him. Then, turning back to the darkness, called out. "Well, should I let them in?"

Silence was the only answer, but the strange man seemed to take that as a definitive.

"He says no," he said apologetically. "But then again... he always says no."

Frowning, Inuyasha approached closer. As he did, so did the old man, stretching out a withered old hand to gently touch the blade in Inuyasha's grasp. The Tenseiga reacted to his presence with a barely visible spark. The sort of thing only hanyou... or full-blooded demons... could produce.

"You're... Inuyasha... the son of Inutaisho..." he said, identifying the white-haired man.

Inuyasha nodded, grateful at least he was recognized. It might make things easier. "I am."

"Slayer of Ryukoytsei and all that?"

"I am."

The old man seemed pleased with then, then puzzled as he caught sight of the others. "Who're you?"

Koga, in the lead, gave a grin. "Koga, the son of Choro."

"Koga? Koga?" he called over his shoulder at the darkness. "Ever heard of a Koga?"

The others exchanged glances, puzzled. They still hadn't heard a thing save the echoes on the walls.

The old man turned back around. "Never heard of you," he stated bluntly.

His pride wounded, Koga gave a weak grin. "Well, your friend may also know me as... the Sea Wolf."

"SEA WOLF?" he called out, the words echoing down the tunnel once more.

No reply came, but it seemed the old man had heard one anyway. Perhaps one of the voices in his head was speaking to him. "Sorry... still no. Don't worry son, he says there are many useless hanyou in the world."

Now his pride had definitely taken a blow, and Koga looked ready to rip the old man apart. "Useless? Listen, old man...!"

But Totosai, for Inuyasha was positive by now that was who they dealt with, was already turning and making his way back into the cavern. Rolling his eyes at his pretentious cousin, he moved to follow. The travelers followed him right into a vast underground workshop, filled with half-forged junk and myriad contraptions, none of which they could quite fathom the purpose of. It was half smithy and half refuse pile.

"Choro dead, Inutaisho captured..." muttered Totosai. "The words... it doesn't even make sense. It's... incomprehendable, that's the word."

"Incomprehensible," Kagome politely corrected.

"We need your help to rescue Inutaisho," Inuyasha explained. "And stop Magatsuhi."

"And that's... that's the plan, is it?" Tososai inquired. He didn't bother to keep the skepticism out of his voice.

"Yeah," Inuyasha replied simply.

"... right," replied the old man, already in a flurry of motion. "Well then, in that case, best prepare."

"Prepare for what?"

"The end of the bloody world!" Totosai spat, picking up some piece of junk and tossing it aside. "Magatsuhi will rip the world to pieces, you'll be scattered clean across existence."

Inuyasha growled, digging his nails into his palm and stopping just short of drawing blood. He threw down the Tenseiga at Totosai's feet, where it clattered loudly against the stone floor.

"You forged these weapons... right here for the demon lords," declared Inuyasha. "You must be able to help us."

"Be silent, fool. How can I help, when I've no more power left? Just these old bones and... what? No of course not...!"

"Who's he talking to?" asked Koga.

Totosai stomped angrily over to the far corner, waving his hand at a tree that had sprouted up out of the earth centuries ago. Someone (likely Totosai himself) had taken it upon themselves to carve a wooden face in the bark. It gazed down at the forger of demon weapons and found him wanting, evidently.

"Don't you walk away from me, Bokuseno! His all-powerful father... _took_ it away! When I sided with Naraku in one of their little family spats... yes I know NOW it was a mistake!"

Having quite the one-sided conversation, Totosai slumped wearily against a stony seat. "People forget, in the beginning, Naraku wasn't so cruel... he was wise once. It was your father," he pointed his finger directly at Inuyasha's nose, so close the hanyou had to go cross-eyed to watch it. "Who became drunk on power."

The others in the party could not contain their disappointment. They'd hoped to find some great demon lord, some mighty forger of weapons. Instead, all they had found here was one sad, delusional man who was lost in his own suffering.

"We were even hoping... when Inutaisho came he might see his mistake and restore our..." Totosai lamented. He perked up at some unheard reply from the tree. "Why not? He might have, had he come... but he never did."

Kagome had heard enough.

The Queen of Edo approached Totosai and made a show of kneeling reverently before the fallen one, catching his attention instantly. It had been quite some time since anyone had paid the slightest bit of homage to him. She all but threw herself at his feet and took his hands in hers.

"Totosai," she said gently. "I'm sorry, that you think being human is not enough. But we humans... we hope when there is no hope. We believe, when to believe is idiotic. But sometimes... just sometimes... in spite of everything... we still prevail."

He watched her with a quiet sort of awe, unable to quite tear his eyes away from her.

"Now... which of you is in charge?" Kagome asked quietly, flicking her gaze over to the carved wooden face.

"I-I am," Totosai said, standing back up. Apparently the question of his authority had returned some of his good sense. That and perhaps a spine as well.

"Then... if we _were_ demon lords, tell us... how would you help us free Inutaisho from the Underworld?" asked Kagome.

"Oh my dear," Totosai said, suddenly feeling very, very old. He squeezed her small hand gently in his. "You remind me of someone dear to my heart. Midoriko. She was my wife..."

Not the first time in her life Kagome had been compared to the demon lady of beauty and love, but it was one of the few times the comparison was made so heartfelt. He wasn't comparing her simply because of her physical beauty, but her spirit. Her strength of character. Her love for the people of the world, from the highest to even the lowliest, which at the moment he felt even lower than.

"... very well, I'll help you," Totosai declared. "Come with me."

The aged smith led the young princess and her companions over to a large structure half-buried in the junk, standing nearly a dozen feet high. It was comprised of many interlocking structures of metal. With a mighty heave, he pulled down on the outermost ring, making it slowly start to spin and rotate.

"If Inutaisho is captive in the underworld... he's likely being held in the heart of the Cauldron. Naraku and Sesshoumaru will be using Inutaisho to wake up Magatsuhi. There can't be much time before his life force... is completely sapped."

"But how do we get to him?" asked Kagome.

"We can't," Koga said. "The Cauldron is said to be nigh-unbreachable. The very heart of the Underworld. Every child knows that."

"Normally you'd be right, young man," Totosai interjected, catching a rotating ring and aligning it against another. "But when I designed this marvel... I included a secret passage, a... shortcut... if you will.

"... _you_ designed the Cauldron?"

"Of course," he answered, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. "Built the damn thing too. My fair Midoriko," he said, addressing Kagome as if she was his long lost wife. "I could not only get you inside, I could give you a guided tour. You see, in order to make the Cauldron prison truly impregnable... I had to design it... from the outside in. So I had to leave a single passage behind to let myself out afterwards when the work was done. And this passage... is your means in."

The rings stopped rotating, and they could all see it now. A path leading to the very heart of the Cauldron. And to Inutaisho.

 _We're coming, dad_ , Inuyasha thought. _Just hold on a little longer_.

* * *

Deep in the Heart of the Cauldron, the hot magma chains continued to flow like ribbons of red energy from the captive King of the Heavens to the All Father, Magatsuhi, who stirred in his slumber. The son grew weaker as the father grew stronger. The energy continued to flow, sapping Inutaisho's strength.

But thankfully, not his will.

"Where is Sesshoumaru?"

Naraku barely spared him a glance, but Inutaisho took this as a sign at least his brother was listening. "Will Magatsuhi really spare him? And you? Is there no end to this, brother?"

The pale demon lord turned to regard Inutaisho, his words having struck him far deeper than Inutaisho had ever meant to.

"I'm afraid," Naraku said slowly, as if forcing the words out. "Is that what you want me to say? I'm one of the most powerful demons in the whole of the world, and I'm afraid."

"Well you should be," Inutaisho replied darkly.

"When your precious humans die, at least their souls go to another place..." Naraku said bitterly. "But us? It's not death... it's oblivion. We simply cease to be. How can I not fear it?"

The Lord of the Underworld, whose very name was spoken of in whispers across the world, turned to gaze up at his dark father, the elder demon Magatsuhi, as his power continued to grow. This was the monster to end all other monsters, who would tear the planet to pieces and feast on its remains. But he was the only hope Naraku had of surviving all this.

That was what he told himself, but in truth, deep in his dark heart, he knew he was already lost.

* * *

Treading along the open plains towards their destination, Totosai led them, showing Koga the map in question he intended to use once they reached the entrance to the Underworld.

"You see, if you align the edges correctly... it gives you a shifting depiction... of the interior."

The wolf hanyou was impressed, eagerly following the old smith's description of his map. "Can I say, that is a masterpiece."

"Well, useful to a point," Totosai replied, well aware of other dangers in the labyrinth. Dangers you couldn't find on a map.

"May I hold it?" Koga asked, reaching for it.

"Ah... no," Totosai replied, swiping it back. Then, changing his mind just as abruptly, decided to offer it anyway. "Well... you are the son of Choro."

Accepting the map eagerly, Koga was fascinated by its twisting and turning metal accents, which could depict one way to go or many.

"Did he ever tell you he's the one who taught me how to navigate?" asked Totosai. "Well, that and how to seduce a mermaid, which comes in handy more often than you think. The trick is... don't talk to her... talk to her _friend_. The rest is easy."

Kagome rolled her eyes, sharing a smile with Inuyasha as the two of them watched the Sea-Wolf and the Smith from just within earshot. Then, catching sight of their destination, they hurried to join the others. A great stone column, like a naturally formed tower, rotated slowly a short distance away.

"Hanyou, this is the entrance to the Labyrinth," Totosai declared proudly. "Filled with hundreds of doors, all of which would kill you... save one. You see... I designed it to play tricks on the mind. The mind is the greatest trap of all. So remember when you get inside... control your fears, and don't turn on one another. Otherwise, you'll simply never make it to the Cauldron. Ah!"

The aged smith scurried down a slope closer to the great tower's base. "There it is. This is the door."

Seconds away from the door, Inuyasha almost allowed himself a chance to relax, thinking the worst of their journey in front of them. He could not have been more wrong. There came a mighty boom from behind, causing everyone's heads to turn, and in the clear sky, an object became visible off in the distance, coming towards them at terrible speed.

"Everyone back!" Inuyasha ordered, drawing his sword.

The object soon became a person, and that person could not be anyone but a demon lord. Sesshoumaru struck with the force of a meteor, knocking everyone off their feet, sending Totosai and Kagome tumbling down the hillside and Inuyasha to roll against the ground before regaining his feet swiftly. The Demon Warlord simply stood back up, regarding them all with a disdainful air.

"Which one of you prayed to him?!" Inuyasha demanded to know. Not that it made a difference now, but he intended to give the soldier in question a thorough lashing of his tongue later. If there was a later.

Sesshoumaru, meanwhile, wasted no time on words, and began his attack.

Two soldiers charged him from his back, hoping to use his blind spots as one hurled a dagger, intend to impale him between his shoulder blades. But Sesshoumaru saw right through his ruse, his senses keener than any mortal mans and his reflexes far quicker. He grabbed the dagger in mid-air before it reached his back, and without breaking stride through it right into the chest of the other charging soldier. He went crashing to the ground as Sesshoumaru lifted up a clawed hand, sharp nails glowing with a greenish, eldritch light.

A lash of his whip of light and another soldier fell, decapitated in a single blow.

"Fall back!" yelled Inuyasha, not wishing to see any more soldiers die by the Warlord's claws.

Totosai wisely heeded his advice, quickly moving to the entranceway, sliding rocks this way and that to unlock the door. If they could get inside, they might yet be safe. "Come on, you beauty! Come on!"

Continuing his relentless step, Sesshoumaru closed on Inuyasha, who growled darkly up at his fully demonic brother. "You betrayed our father!"

Sesshoumaru gave him a contemptuous look. "No. _He_ betrayed _me_... by choosing _you_."

Inuyasha swung his sword, but Sesshoumaru effortlessly deflected it, following through with an elbow strike that caught his hanyou sibling in the gut, knocking him through the air to crash against a rocky hillside.

Finally managing to open the door, Totosai gave a cheer, then swiftly called to the others. "Come on! It won't stay open for long!"

Changing the nature of their engagement from delay to endure, Inuyasha tried to dodge and slip under Sesshoumaru's next attack, but the Demon Warlord grabbed his younger brother by his throat and hurled him into another rock, smashing it to pieces. He did the same thing when Koga came charging in with the Tenseiga, kicking the Sea-Wolf aside like he was little more than a piece of refuse.

Kagome notched an arrow and fired, but Sesshoumaru caught the arrow inches from his face, grinning at her coldly as he snapped the shaft in two and tossed the broken arrow aside. Another lash of his whip, and she was sent reeling to the ground.

"Lord Sesshoumaru!" Jaken cried out, hurling himself to his knees in front of the demon lord. "Please, I beg you, be merciful! It was I who prayed to you! I was always taught... t-to p-pray..." his voice faltering as the cold gaze of the Warlord fell on him. "F-for our e-e-e-e-en-n-nemies? I prayed you would find peace in your...!"

That word proved his final undoing.

At the very mention of 'peace' Sesshoumaru lifted up his booted foot and brought it down on Jaken's head, crushing his skull into so much gooey paste beneath his boot. He gazed down at it disdainfully, almost not bothering to look up as his arm snapped up to catch Inuyasha, about to run him through, by the throat.

As his half-brother struggled in his grip, Sesshoumaru finally did lift his gaze, glaring at the filthy hanyou who dared steal his father's love from him.

"We are brothers," Sesshomaru declared. "But not equal."

With an almost casual flick, he threw Inuyasha crashing through a column of marble and tumbling down the hillside. He was about to finish him off as well, when Totosai threw himself bodily at the Demon Warlord, knocking Sesshoumaru's aim off. The aged Smith tried to hold him off, but he was woefully outmatched and he knew it. One last worthy act, a sacrifice for those in need. Sesshoumaru slapped him aside with a disdainful backhand, nearly breaking every rib in his body as he was flung to the rocky ground.

"Hurry, the door's closing!"

Kagome pulled Inuyasha along, who stumbled against her, falling, faltering, but moving forward. They had to hurry. Sesshoumaru pursued hotly on their heels, claws glowing as he prepared another energy whip.

"Sesshoumaru!" Totosai spat, already half dead. "Is that all you've got?! You... sniveling... DOG?!"

The Demon Warlord growled, flexing his fingers, displaying his claws, and thrusting his hand forward into the aged smith's chest, burying his hand up to the wrist inside and then yanking out his still beating heart. Totosai mercifully expired in mere seconds.

Nor was his sacrifice in vain. With mere seconds to spare, Inuyasha, Koga, and Kagome slipped through the closing door, and Sesshoumaru reached it just in time to slam a fist against the stone face, thwarted. He fumed outside, glaring so mightily it seemed he might bore through the mountain with his terrible gaze alone. But he could not go after them now.

They were safe.

* * *

 **Authors Notes:  
** Bokuseno's addition was a last minute decision on my part, to give place of someone for Totosai to argue with whom he obviously had a history with and wouldn't unduly change the plot of the story.

And of course, most of you probably foresaw poor Jaken's fate coming a mile off. No leather pants for _this_ Sesshoumaru.


	13. Labyrinth of the Mind

They were safe for the moment... from the Demon Warlord Sesshoumaru. But now the three of them were inside the Labyrinth. Without Totosai, the only one who could guide them through it.

Out of the fire and into the inferno.

"Jaken you miserable little toad..." Kagome cursed, trying to feel anger for the little imp of a demon. But in truth, she felt nothing but pity. He had been terrified, and his fear had cost him his life in the end. "He was a fool to pray to Sesshoumaru."

"And _he_ was a coward to kill the weak," Inuyasha growled, still feeling the sting of his brother's blows. "He's fought in so many wars, he's slaughtered so many innocents... it's all he knows anymore."

He groaned, feeling a particularly nasty bruise forming on his back. From when Sesshoumaru had batted Inuyasha aside like a newborn infant. His words still echoed in Inuyasha's ears. _We are brothers... but not equal._

"I can't beat him."

The slap came out of nowhere, startling Inuyasha. His eyes met Koga's as the wolf hanyou leaned in close, almost nose to nose. "You idiot," he said. "Two days ago I was trapped in a dungeon... admittedly trying to escape. A bit unbecoming of the son of Choro. But today I'm here, and I'm trying to save the world."

Inuyasha nodded, finding his words truthful enough. They echoed in his own soul, having said them to himself many a time.

"Jump in."

With that, the two hanyou stood, Inuyasha aiding Kagome to her feet as Koga produced the map Totosai had given them, taking a moment to adjust its metalwork and get a reading on the labyrinth. After a tense moment or two, he looked up at the two of them, apparently ready.

"Your Majesty... I, uh... realize in a labyrinth with a million possibilities... this is probably the last thing you want to hear... but follow me."

* * *

Koga followed the map faithfully, even as the tunnels continued to shift and change around them. Always in subtle, small ways, always just out of sight, or in the corner of their eyes. If not forewarned of the dangers of the labyrinth, they might well have lost their way down here. Starved, gone mad, killed one another, or worse. As it was, they proceeded deeper into the tunnel towards the Cauldron.

It was impossible not to be moved by the sheer scope and size of the Cauldron's labyrinth, the walls hundreds of feet high, with chasms tens of thousands of feet below, leading to depths even _demons_ had never gone to. Twists and turns led them in ever more confusing paths as Koga did his best to read the map and navigate them, but even he occasionally second-guessed his decision on occasion, doubling back or trying a new path that had opened up before them.

One particularly bad turn led them right to a bare wall. "This should be a corridor," Koga growled, smacking his hand against it, hoping to find a secret passage. "Grah, this map makes no sense!"

"Koga, just give me the map," Inuyasha said, muscling his way forward past Kagome, almost shoving her aside in his haste.

The wolf hanyou glared at his rival, shaking his head derisively. "The mighty slayer of Ryukoytsei. Shouldn't you be somewhere else... posing for a statue?" he spat derisively.

"Koga..." Inuyasha growled back.

Kagome rolled her eyes at their constant bickering. _Men_ , she thought. _Demon or human, they were all the same_.

"...just give me the map!" snarled Inuyasha.

"The map is useless!" spat Kagome derisively. "You're both going to get us all killed!"

"Look, I know where we're going!" Koga growled wolfishly.

Inuyasha snarled, going for his sword, when the walls started to suddenly shift. Great stone slabs lifted up and lowered down, sliding sideways and backwards in all directions. The trio could not tell which way to turn as the entire labyrinth began to change. They had to move now, or they would lose their path forever.

"This way!" Inuyasha shouted.

"No this way!" Koga protested.

"Idiots!" screamed Kagome.

The three of them quickly became separated as the walls and floor slid out from underneath them, shifting and moving impossibly fast. Inuyasha tumbled down into an open floor as Kagome and Koga were cut off by a wall intersecting right between them. One misstep and any of them could be crushed. As it was, the labyrinth seemed to finally settle moments later.

But they had been separated from one another, and were now lost and alone.

* * *

Unable to find the others, unable to even tell which way he'd gone, Inuyasha moved forward, trusting his demonic instincts to guide him. Surely he could at least find a way to his father. Or Kagome. Or Koga, if he must. He just needed to pick up one of their fresh scents and follow it until...

... something moved up ahead.

Freezing in mid-step, Inuyasha fell into a fighting stance, claws upraised and bared, ready for anything that might come at him. He saw a silhouette of a small man in the distance, but his keen eyes couldn't pierce the darkness to see any better. When they did finally step into the light, Inuyasha felt his jaw drop. No, it couldn't be...

But it was. Sota, son of Inuyasha, grandson of Inutaisho, stepped out of the gloom, gazing at his father with a glazed expression of apathy.

"Hello, father... I see you've come to join me," Sota said in a dull tone. His voice sounded oddly distorted, like an echo of a real voice, but the pitch was otherwise perfectly the same. Everything was the same, his face, his form, even the threadbare clothes. It seemed like Sota... except...

"... you're not real," Inuyasha declared. There was no scent. None at all. All he could smell in the air was the scent of dust... and death. Sota was not here, he was home, safe, where he needed to be. This was some other illusion of the labyrinth, playing tricks on his mind.

Realizing he'd been discovered, the beast wearing the face of Sota charged. With frightening speed the thing that looked like his son smashed into Inuyasha's midsection, knocking him over the creature's back and sending him crashing to the ground behind him. Growling, Inuyasha rolled to his stomach and climbed onto his hands and knees, even as the demon's form shimmered and waved, like deep under the rippling waters, before revealing its true form.

A hulking brute, towering at easily eight feet tall, long limbed and thickly muscled. A skin tougher than iron and colored dark violet, stretched across the framework of the body, complimented by the mane of white hair that descended from behind its hideous head. Its eyes were red and glaring, its mouth full of sharp teeth, and the claws at the end of its three-fingered hands were sharp as daggers. A pair of mighty horns erupted from either side of its head, nearly two feet long each and nearly brushing against the ceiling.

"Keh-keh-keh-keh... did you like my little trick, Inuyasha?"

"You... monster..." growled the white-haired hanyou.

"Goshiniki," the beast introduced himself. "Remember the name, for it will be the last thing you EVER remember!"

Roaring, the beast reared up a clawed foot, stomping it down hard as Inuyasha rolled out of the way. Snapping jaws narrowly missed his shoulder, and Inuyasha responded with a hard fist right in the beasts snout. It recoiled, but then took a stance and charged, horns forward. Inuyasha had finally regained his feet in time to catch them, but he was pushed back on his heels, digging into the ground.

Goshinki was tough, and fast, and worst of all seemed to know every move Inuyasha made before he made them. If it knew his name and knew of his son then it seemed it could read his very mind. Inuyasha would have to fight on blind instinct and hope it would be enough. The monster snarled in his face, even as Inuyasha grimly tried to hold it off. Then, with a quick decision, side-stepped the brute and threw it into its own charge, smashing it horns first into the wall and locking it into the thick stone.

"What are you doing?" rasped the beast. In _Sota_ 's voice. "Please don't kill me father!"

Unwilling to play anymore mind games, infuriated beyond all measure this monster dared to use his own son against him, Inuyasha grabbed a nearby rock and smashed its head open. One strike, then two, then a third for good measure, reducing its brains to so much of a red stain on the floor of the dark tunnels.

As if signaled by its death to change once more, the labyrinth tunnels began to shift and move, descending and lowering, sliding back and forth and all manner of ways in between. This time, however, Inuyasha stood perfectly still, and waited. In not trying to press forward, he found himself carried that way. When finally the walls stopped moving, he found himself in a short length of tunnel leading onwards into the Cauldron at the heart of the Underworld.

Inuyasha stumbled, leaning against a wall for support, unsure if he should even press on. He couldn't very well return to the labyrinth on the off-chance he could find Kagome and Koga again, and yet without them, he didn't fancy his chances further on, deeper in the Underworld. The Cauldron lay just ahead, and yet Inuyasha could not go on.

"Inuyasha!"

Two voices cried out at once, as Koga quickly grabbed Inuyasha's shoulder to steady him. Kagome was seconds behind, both of them showing concern over his fresh injuries. He waved off their concern, just relieved to see them again. It seemed they'd found their way as well. Inuyasha didn't even want to imagine the horrors they must have been through on their own paths, but those same paths had intersected once again.

And not a moment too soon either. Just up ahead, down a clear stretch of corridor, was the innermost chamber of the Cauldron.

Magatsuhi's cell. And Inutaisho's prison.

* * *

The great King of the Heavens and Dog Demon looked decidedly pathetic, worn down to his very bones as more and more of his strength was drained out of his body. By contrast, Magatsuhi was looking stronger every minute, great molten veins of energy criss-crossing his body as the power of his demonic son fueled him.

"Magatsuhi has your power now," Naraku declared. In mere moments, he would have Inutaisho's life as well.

"Naraku..." his brother weakly called out to him, prompting the Lord of the Underworld to look his way. "I'm so sorry..."

"For what?" Naraku queried.

"For having banished you. Can you forgive me for that?"

"Why do you ask?" he said, not comprehending the line of conversation. Here, now, of all places and times.

Inutaisho, however, spelled it out for him. "Because I forgive you for this," he said, gesturing weakly with his hands as he slumped against his bonds. "Release me, Naraku. I know there is still good in you."

Naraku tried to glare up at his brother, tried to hold on bitterly to his fury and his rage. But the truth was laid bare, both had long since gone cold in his heart. He no longer hated his brother, he was terrified for him instead. The pain of non-existence, a fate worse than death.

With barely a pause, Naraku reached for Inutaisho's bonds, determined to free him before it was too late...

... when a whip of eldritch energy lashed across the back of his knee, and then Sesshoumaru was there, smashing into him and knocking him to the ground, away from his brother.

"You have no pride, Naraku," Sesshoumaru growled coldly, reaching for the Tetsusaiga at his side and drawing it. But to his annoyance, it stubbornly remained a piece of broken and rusted metal, a useless hunk of tin you could not kill a mouse with.

"No!" declared Inutaisho, his voice struggling to remain strong. "I won't let you kill him."

"Brother..." breathed out Naraku.

The blade stubbornly refusing to obey him, Sesshoumaru smacked it against a nearby rock. "You can't stop this!" he told Inutaisho. "This is the end for you!"

And indeed his words seemed to be right. For as the three of them watched, the great molten form of Magatsuhi began to stir, and finally, his demonic eyes opened, red slits of hellfire that lit up the entire underground cavern, bathing it in unholy light.

"SESSHOUMARU!" roared Naraku.

The elder Lord of the Underworld hurled himself at the Demon Warlord, weapons clashing as they struck amidst the fire and smoke. Demon clashed against demon. Unable to best the younger demon, Naraku threw himself at his midsection, knocking them both back and off into the Abyss far below. Leaving Inutaisho unguarded, if still chained, as Magatsuhi continued to stir. A great groaning echo filled the hall, like the roar of a titanic dragon.

It was as appropriate a time as any for the cavalry to arrive. Inuyasha, Koga, and Kagome, reached the King of the Heavens with seconds to spare. The Sea-Wolf held back as the others rushed to his sides. He did not look good, every year of thousands of millennia was etched into his face, making him look positively ancient, and his breath came in shallow gasps, a struggle to draw each one.

"Dad...!" Inuyasha said, trying desperately to make sure his old man was alright.

"Inuyasha... my son..." Inutaisho breathed out, his strength failing him. He had only a little left until he was wholly empty.

"How do we... how can we...?" Kagome cast a glance at the shackles of molten lava, unable to comprehend how to free the Demon Lord.

"Inuyasha can do it... use the power within," his father bade him.

Nodding, Inuyasha drew the Tenseiga and swung the blade, slashing at the bonds, throwing all of his strength into the blows. The molten rock crumbled under his blows, and Inutaisho slumped into Kagome's arms wearily. She managed to hold him up, for he seemed light as a feather, all hollow and empty. His release came not a moment too soon, for Magatsuhi rose, his great arm of rock and lava reaching for them, intent to crush them under his mighty fingers.

They turned to flee, but Koga cried out a warning. Sesshoumaru was coming, the Demon Warlord lit up by the firey backlight, looking more and more hellish by the second. Caught between Sesshoumaru and Magatsuhi, they seemed to have the most unpleasant of choices available to them: die fast or die slow.

Sesshoumaru seemed to favor the first option, still advancing on them with his claws glowing with a terrible light. Inuyasha stood in his path, determined to protect his father, but he needn't have bothered, for Naraku materialized out of the shadows and struck Sesshoumaru from behind, bearing the taller demon to the ground. His face alone spoke volumes.

 _Go_ , it said, without saying a word.

"Naraku, come with us," Inutaisho pleaded, even as the two hanyous and the princess carried him to safety. But Sesshoumaru was far from finished. Kicking aside Naraku and grabbing up his uncle's sword, the Sou'unga, he threw it through the air, impaling his aged and dying father clear through the back with it. Inutaisho slumped to his knees as Inuyasha gave a howl of denial.

"NOO!"

Yanking the blade free, Inuyasha glared at Sesshoumaru, who regarded him as indifferently as he would the wind on his face. Naraku struggled to overpower him, but even he was no match for the Demon Warlord in a straight up fight. He fell to one knee as Sesshoumaru pursued the fleeing humans and half-breeds, determined to end all of their miserable existence.

Summoning the last of his willpower, Inutaisho raised up his hand. A single bolt of lightning struck...

* * *

... an instantly he, Inuyasha, Koga, and Kagame, were back in Edo. On the edge of Edo, in fact, at the Broken Pass. Just in time, as she'd promised they would be. His power spent, Inutaisho collapsed, unconscious instantly in his son's arms.

They landed all but right in the very midst of the legion's of Edo, it seemed, and within seconds an armed escort was closing in on them, led by Kagome's prime General Hojo. She nodded to him, not wasting time with the why or how, but focusing on the present.

"You've gathered a fine army," she complimented.

"And we've prepared a royal tent," General Hojo confirmed.

"Is it fit for a demon lord?" she asked, almost casually.

Supported by the two hanyou, Inutaisho was unconscious, but his face and features were instantly recognizable to all. Many soldiers fell to their knees as the sight of a demon lord in their midst. Kagome rolled her eyes as they escorted the 'great' Inutaisho to the royal tents, laying him down on a table where he could rest. Beyond there, there was little they could do for him. Demon wounds did not heal the same way mortal ones did, and his seemed worse than most. They'd been inflicted by a monster on a scale unlike anything they'd ever seen before.

Gathering water, Inuyasha was stopped by a trembling hand grasping his own.

"Magatsuhi... will come for me," Inutaisho gasped out. "I don't... have the power left to stop him."

Every ragged breath drawn was a struggle, as Inuyasha exchanged looks with Koga and Kagome. Their mission was a failure after all.

"I wanted... to leave the world safe for you... I failed..."

"I should've come with you," Inuyasha protested, taking his father's hand in his, squeezing. "We might've been able to stop this. Together. I just..."

"You pulled me out of the Cauldron," his father said. "You saved me. How do you suppose you did that?"

"... I never stopped thinking about getting home to my son," Inuyasha replied. That was his strength. That was what kept him going.

Inutaisho seemed pleased by his answer. "Then you use that. Fight for your son. Remember..." he gasped, shuddering. "Only... only the Blade of Trinity... can slay Magatsuhi. And the hand that... holds that sword... will have to yours. Only you... can do this... Inuyasha..."

With that, the King of the Heavens collapsed onto the table, unconscious, perhaps near death. His breathing was shallow, but Inuyasha still heard a heartbeat as he rested his head on his father's chest. They still had a chance, however small.

So they took stock of their inventory.

"Choro's Tenseiga..." Koga offered it to Inuyasha, who slung it over his back.

"... and Naraku's Sou'unga," Kagome said, adding it.

"So, what we need is Inutaisho's Tetsusaiga," the white-haired hanyou said.

"Which is on Sesshoumaru's hip," Koga pointed out.

And that was the snag in their plan.

"Yeah."

* * *

 **Authors Notes:  
** Guest starring Goshinki as the Minotaur. I came to the plot point almost prepared to skip over it when I remembered him from the manga as a tough and memorable foe for Inuyasha (breaking his sword tends to be fairly memorable), to say nothing of someone apt for mind games, and decided to include him after all. I mean, he even had the horns for the job! It's the role he was born to play!


	14. Battle Between Brothers

In the midst of preparations for battle, Inuyasha found himself on the edge of the army's fortifications. Doing something a touch unusual for the white-haired hanyou. Something he had never previously done in his life. Something he usually scorned and derided as a thing for fools.

Praying.

"Sesshoumaru," he prayed. "Meet me at the Temple of the Great Demons. At the base of Mount Fuji. You say we're not equal... let's see you prove it."

* * *

On a lost prairie, Sesshoumaru tilted his head, eyes closed. Then, after a moment, nodded as his eyes re-opened. "I hear you, brother," he accepted.

It was indeed time to settle things between himself and his younger half-sibling. But after the humiliating showing he'd just witnessed, and the theft of Inutaisho from his rightful imprisonment, there was something else Sesshoumaru needed to do.

He intended to make this the very last battle between them. He needed insurance to make sure his half-sibling did not run. And he wanted to ensure Inuyasha suffered every little last bit before the end. Which meant he needed to take a detour on his way to Mount Fuji.

* * *

His prayers concluded, Inuyasha conferred briefly with Kagome and Koga. Their plan was, unfortunately, simple in its premise but may have proven more difficult in execution.

"I'll get the sword," he promised. "Just hold off Magatsuhi as long as you can."

Queen Kagome nodded. It didn't matter she was being given an impossible task to hold off the most ancient of demon lords. She would find a way to do it. And as for Koga...

"Don't give me the big speech," the wolf hanyou asked. He wasn't running, evidently. He'd come a long way from being the thief and blowhard they'd met in Edo's dungeons.

"Wasn't planning on it," Inuyasha said, clasping hands with his cousin and nodding.

Without another word, he climbed atop of Kirara's back, who promptly took to the air on paws lit by fire. The two of them were out of sight in mere moments, galloping across the skies towards Mount Fuji. They'd make good time, but no matter how quickly they were, Kagome and her men wouldn't be able to avoid battle entirely. With this in mind, she drew her generals together (Koga now amongst them) and outlined her plan of attack.

"Our battle plan must be simple," she explained, using a map and some figurines to outline their orders. "Koga, you have the front line with the trenches. Make sure to cover every part of yourself in mud, or you'll be burned. Everything, you understand me? After that we have the phalanxes behind you. Infantry and archers in the back. I will lead the infantry myself. And our job is to hold Magatsuhi back for as long as possible. If we're to have any chance, we need to hold him as long as we can. Until Inuyasha can return. Do you all understand?"

Evidently they did, for when she gave the order, they dispersed immediately do to their duty. Setting up defensive positions, organizing into platoons, readying weapons, armor, anything they might need and then something.

And only just in time too, for in the distance, a great mountain burst into flame, a volcano of molten rock being hurled skywards along with black smoke. Even this far away they could feel the shockwave wash over their forces, as well as tons of ash and soot. And that, unfortunately, was only the beginning of it. Great flaming boulders came flying through the air, smashing into the ground by their fortifications. Many burst apart on impact, and thankfully their aim was lacking, but the worst was yet to come.

Several of the rocks broke apart as hellish demonic monsters emerged. Terribly powerful, these were elder demons like Magatsuhi, with immeasurable endurance and frightening ferocity. An armed man with draconic scales and swords in hand. A red-haired woman with a fan. A pale-haired brute with fangs and a cannon. Even a great lizard with a tortoise shell on his back. These four and many others besides came charging the front lines where Koga readied himself and his men to face them.

The battlefield quickly erupted into chaos as men and women were cut down, humans and demons clashed in the mud and the dirt, fires lit up the landscape, and there was blood and death everywhere.

What may have been the final battle for the fate of the world had begun.

* * *

Elsewhere, another battle was taking place. Inuyasha had dismounted Kirara, leaving the great cat demon outside the temple as he strolled inside. The entire earth shaking was doing nothing for the great statues of the demon lords, who looked more miserable and broken than ever.

The smell of death was thick in the air, along with the coppery scent of blood. Sesshoumaru was here already, Inuyasha knew. He stepped around the fallen stone head of Sesshoumaru's statue to confront the Demon Warlord himself, standing impassively before the great altar. If Inuyasha had hoped to catch his elder brother unaware, he was sadly mistaken. No sooner did he step forward then the cold, golden gaze of Sesshoumaru fell on him.

"Brother," Inuyasha said shortly.

"Brother," Sesshoumaru replied disdainfully.

As Inuyasha came around the column to properly face his demonic brother, he saw he wasn't alone either. Standing in front of him, jaw clutched in Sesshoumaru's sharp claws, was Sota. Inuyasha felt his heart stop and his blood freeze, even as he tried to keep his composure. The instant Sesshoumaru smelled blood, he'd strike. His son was in harm's way. One sharp twist and...

"Don't hurt him!"

"I'm not going to hurt him," the silver-haired demon promised. "I'm going to hurt _you_. And I want him to watch. I want him to know what it feels like when someone takes your father away from you."

With that, he released Sota.

Inuyasha's son scurried for cover as the two brothers began their fight. Unslinging the Sou'unga and the Tenseiga from his back, Inuyasha charged forward, swinging both weapons in wild arcs, hoping one would slip past Sesshoumaru's defense. But his older brother knocked them aside with his whip of energy, swatting the Sou'unga clean out of Inuyasha's hands and deflecting any subsequent attacks with the Tenseiga. Sesshoumaru caught his next attack by the wrist, and Inuyasha lashed out with his claws, forcing the older sibling to grab that limb too. Growling, he tried a headbutt, smashing it against Sesshoumaru's chest. But if he was hoping that would work, he was sadly disappointed, the elder demon might as well have been made of iron. A point he made by lashing out with a foot and kicking his hanyou half-sibling away from him. Inuyasha went tumbling down into the ruins, crashing into an overturned column. He barely managed to hold on to his sword.

And Sesshoumaru evidently wasn't done with him yet, either.

He advanced menacingly. Seizing a rock in his hands, Inuyasha turned and smashed it into his brother's face, shattering it into pebbles and finally managing to stagger his brother. It wasn't much, but the Demon Warlord definitely looked like he'd felt that strike. Encouraged, Inuyasha threw another punch, going for the face, hoping to knock the smug son of a bitch into the next century.

The blow further staggered Sesshoumaru, who bled feebly from his lip, possibly having bit it. Or his tongue. As he turned, the Tetsusaiga on his hip came into sight, and Inuyasha reached for it. If he could get the sword and Sota out of here, they'd won, and he could worry about Sesshoumaru another day. His brother put an end to that delusion by grabbing his red robes by the shoulders, spinning on his heel and hauling Inuyasha off his feet. He then proceeded to PLOW him through the nearest column, using such force he tore through it like a battering ram. And Inuyasha was the ram.

Broken, Inuyasha spat blood as he collapsed, positive his skull would have been fractured had he been fully human. Never had he been so grateful for his demon blood. But he still wasn't quite able to match Sesshoumaru. The Demon Warlord chucked him back and forth like a ragdoll, while he was barely able to land a blow on his brother, let alone a mortal one.

But as even the Demon Warlord could tell you, you only had to win one battle to win the war: the last one. And they weren't done yet. Not by a long shot.

* * *

The demonic horde struck with the force of a tidal wave, washing over the human defenders and the front lines in mere minutes. Screams of the dying filled the air as the demonic beasts tore through their ranks, ripping and tearing with anything at their disposal. Those with more human limbs grabbed up weapons suitable to their forms, unleashing devastating blows from stolen swords and spears, fanning the flames to spread across the battlefield. Those without ripped and slashed and gored with claws and teeth and horns.

"Front line, with me!" Koga roared, throwing himself into the fray with makeshift metal claws strapped to his wrist. An unorthodox weapon, but one he wielded with great skill as he savagely tore his way through the demon horde's ranks. Snarling, he grabbed a dagger of his belt and hurling it at a nearby demon, impaling them through the eye. It didn't slow them down much, but it did blind them to an attack from that side, enabling one of the other troops to impale it with a spear.

Even so, there were so many of them the defenders quickly lost count, and the Broken Pass quickly became a Broken Battlefield. Men and demons clashed as they fought for the future of their world, hideous misshapen beasts spitting flames and wielding molten steel against soldiers and men who fought back with swords and arrows.

Another wave of hell beasts descended on their right flank, where Hojo commanded.

"STAND FIRM!" the young general commanded. His voice did not waver with fear, his men did not hesitate in following their orders.

His phalanx of spear-wielding infantry set their shields and lined up their spears, the second rank over the first rank's shoulders. Advancing in steps of one or two, they were an impressive sight to behold. One demon, stupid or reckless enough to try his luck, tried to ram them down. He was rewarded for his arrogance with a dozen spears in the gut, two of which erupted out of his back before he collapsed onto the ground, spilling his acidic blood everywhere.

Three more demons fell as Koga tore through them with his blades, ripping through flesh and steel like it was hot butter, snarling like the wolf he was. Sacred arrows of pure light lit up the air as Kagome joined the fray, her bow positively singing as she took down demon after demon. Most of them erupted into light and then dissolved into nothingness the moment her arrows struck. Others stumbled about without limbs, lost arms and legs sending them crashing to the ground, easier prey for the soldiers of Edo. The soldiers of mankind.

But more and more continued to fall in the wake of the elder demons wrath, the monsters of the Cauldron tearing through their defenses despite their best efforts. For every one they felled it claimed a dozen soldiers before it expired, and they simply didn't have the manpower or resources to match horrible creatures such as these.

Nor was that the worst of it. Though Kagome, Koga, and the other soldiers were holding the line against the elder demons and monsters sealed inside the Cauldron, the greatest of them still continued to rise on the horizon. Magatsuhi, the First. And quite possibly... the Last.

* * *

Their fight carried on and on until both brothers were stained in blood and covered in bruises. But despite all his efforts Inuyasha could not best his brother. Every strike he tried the other saw coming. He was a fisherman by trade, not a warrior. Able to out-think and out-clever beasts and brutes was one thing, and over-powering regular soldiers was fine and dandy. But against the Demon Warlord, he had no tricks left to save him. Nor did he have much strength left. Their battle continued to battered at his body until he was near his breaking point.

By contrast, Sesshoumaru could wage war for hours, having stamina to spare.

In the end, Inuyasha could barely stand, clutching his shoulder, feeling the blood flow down his right arm, hanging limply at his side. Sesshoumaru paid no mind to his wound, save to favor it with his next strike, wrenching a cry from the white-haired hanyou's lips as he tumbled down into the dirt.

His eyes met Sota's, watching fearfully from nearby. Unable to speak, barely able to breathe, he tried to convey without words that everything was going to be alright. That he was going to be okay.

Sota nodded, whispering a soft, frantic 'get up' under his breath.

Inuyasha saw it, and tried to do so. His strength was failing, but the love of his son was a fire that would never burn out. Slowly, gradually, he began to rise to feet.

Puzzled, Sesshoumaru watched as he did so, one silvery eyebrow raised in confusion. "So this is what a father... would go through for his son?"

Not bothering to reply, Inuyasha again went for the sword. Sesshoumaru rewarded him with a vicious strike to his head, knocking him back down. And he followed it up with kicks, each strong and fast as a thunderbolt. This was no longer calculated combat of a warrior, this was centuries of pent up rage and hatred over his perceived slight. Of the misguided belief Inuyasha had been loved more than he by their father.

He was going to tear his little half-brother apart with his bare claws.

* * *

Sesshoumaru, growling darkly down at his dying brother, reared back a clawed hand to strike, his sharp nails vibrating with power... then paused. His keen senses warned him of danger.

Turning slowly, he saw the most ludicrous of sights.

Sota stood there, by a column long smashed to rubble, wielding his father's sword. Lost in the skirmish, he'd picked it up and now held grimly onto it. He clearly meant to attack, but by the same token was terrified. The steel in his hands trembled from obvious terror as Sesshoumaru turned his full dark glare on the quarter demon boy who dared to point a weapon at him.

"Do you really wish to do this, boy?" he growled. "Drop that blade, and I will spare you."

Despite coming dangerously close to passing out from the fear, Sota grimly held onto the sword, raising it up with both hands, the tip pointed at Sesshoumaru's heart. Not a verbal response, but an answer none the less. And as a soldier himself, Sesshoumaru could respect courage. He'd make the boy's end swift, unlike...

And then Sesshoumaru realized he'd taken his eyes off his little brother. He moved swiftly to correct this error.

Inuyasha stood once more. On shaky legs, it was true, but he stood, still clutching his wounded shoulder. Before his window of opportunity was lost, Inuyasha sunk his claws into his wounded shoulder, dipping them in his blood. The blood of a demon lord that flowed through his veins. Then, with a mighty cry, flung the blood at his elder brother. They formed into crimson blades in mid-air as the blood struck at Sesshoumaru.

The full-blooded demon hastily threw up an arm to block the strikes, but they tore through his body anyway. One lucky strike ripped through his left arm, severing it at the shoulder and sending the limb to crash onto the ground. Roaring monstrously, the Demon Warlord felt his power surge, his eyes lighting up with reddish flames. He was going to kill them all. Every last one.

Starting with that filthy half-breed Inuyasha!

Mighty blows rocked the temple to its foundations as the siblings clashed once more. Yet without his arm, Sesshoumaru was at a severe handicap. One Inuyasha took full advantage of, grasping his brother's good arm and around his neck, pinning it there as he tightened his grip, cutting off Sesshoumaru's air and keeping him from striking back. Snarling, the silver-haired dog demon flung himself this way and that, smashing into walls blindly to dislodge the flea that had dared to attach itself to his person. No longer fighting with the strategy of a soldier, now he was all blind rage and destruction. Even if the fight had ended he would have fought on.

As Naraku had predicted, it proved his undoing.

Unable to counter his brother's next blow, Sesshoumaru's side was torn by claws, bleeding feebly and staining his white robes red underneath his armor. Growling like a savage animal, he lashed out with a whip, striking a column when he missed Inuyasha and cutting it clean in half. It slid down to crash beside its fallen brothers, but Sesshoumaru was already being knocked off his feet by Inuyasha.

Wasting no time, the hanyou yanked the Tetsusaiga from Sesshoumaru's sash, unsheathing it in one smooth motion. And unlike his full-blooded brother, the weapon actually worked for him, manifesting its true form in a blaze of light seconds before Inuyasha thrust it deep into his brothers chest. Growling, Sesshoumaru lashed out weakly with a claw, raking it across his brother's face, but Inuyasha scarcely felt the stinging claws draw blood. He leaned forward, burying the Tetsusaiga up to the hilt in Sesshoumaru's chest, piercing right through his heart.

The Demon Warlord growled, shaking his death throes as he managed to grab hold of Inuyasha's head, forcing their eyes to meet one final time... before he finally expired.

His last breath slipped out of his lips seconds before Sesshoumaru turned to dust and crumbled away on the winds, scattered across the temple. Another demon lord fallen. Another life lost in a senseless clash of demons. Inuyasha growled furiously at the injustice of it all.

No more.

Inuyasha felt demonic power flow into his body as he held the Tetsusaiga. The blade of his father. The weapon of demon lords. But only part of what they needed. The rest...

"Sota! Weapons!"

His son scurried over to Inuyasha's side, carrying Sou'unga and the Tenseiga. Inuyasha slapped down the Tetsusiaga, and together they placed the three swords side by side. Together, the metal warped and changed, glowing with impossible power as the swords merged into one blade. The Trinity Blade, which seemed to be little more than a handle of gold and a blade comprised of white fire. Inuyasha reverently picked it up, holding it skyward. It pulsed in his hand, so mightily for a moment he feared he could not keep hold of it. This was a power unlike anything he'd ever witnessed. Grimly he tightened his grip, feeling the metal burn against his palm, but mercifully was able to maintain his hold.

Now they had the means to defeat Magatsuhi.

* * *

 **Authors Notes:  
** A cameo from the Four War Gods from the fourth Inuyasha movie, Fire on the Mystic Island.

And we're off to the finale!


	15. End of an Era

As the battle continued to rage, a single solitary figure visited the tent where Inutaisho lay in a healing coma. No soldiers stopped him, they had all been called to the front lines. Even the healers had all vanished, working to tend to other wounded. There was nothing they could do for the King of the Heavens.

But there was something he could do.

Throwing back the hood of his cloak, he revealed his face, that of Naraku, the dark-haired Lord of the Underworld. His gaze was strangely calm as he beheld his elder brother, laid out on the table, clinging to life by the thinnest of threads.

"Brother... I do forgive you," he whispered.

Even half conscious, Inutaisho's hand instinctively reached up at his voice and words. Naraku took it in his own, closing his eyes as he did something he had not done since a time before memory: shared his power.

The elder brother gasped as energy flowed through him, restoring his demonic might. His wrinkles all but vanished as his hair became vibrant and luxurious white once more. Even his clothes and armor seemed to repair themselves, reflecting the return to power of their master.

"You look at least ten thousand years younger, brother," Naraku remarked, releasing his brother's hand.

"And feel it," replied Inutaisho, sitting up and breathing more easily.

"Death was circling you... that was the last time I'll have the strength to chase it away..."

He nodded, feeling new energy in his bones and muscles. "But we have the power between us... to put on a little display."

"Like in the old days," the Lord of the Underworld mused. _Those had been good times_ , he mused.

"So shall we finish this?" asked the dog demon with a grin, baring his fangs.

"We have no weapons," Naraku reminded him, ever the pragmatic one.

"We had power before we had weapons," Inutaisho reminded _him_.

"When we were younger..."

"Yes..."

"Let's have some _fun_."

* * *

Strolling out of the tent, Inutaisho and Naraku waded into the battlefield like they owned it, and proceeded to do just that. Monsters and demons too frightful to bear were swatted aside and torn apart by the might of these, the sons of Magatsuhi. Humans paused in the wake of their passing, tempted to fall to their knees in awe and horror as they watched the two of them turn the tide of battle into a veritable onslaught of destruction for the forces of chaos.

* * *

The trinity blade burning in his hand with white fire, Inuyasha hurried out of the temple to Kirara, the great demon cat waiting and raring to go. Inuyasha climbed on her back as quickly as he could, bringing the weapon needed to slay Magatsuhi to the front lines. They were off in moments, racing against the wind, and yet it still did not seem to be fast enough.

"Come ON!" he shouted over the howl of the wind.

They needed to get there soon, or none of it would matter.

* * *

The mountainside erupted, rocks raining down from the skies as Magatsuhi finally freed himself from the Cauldron and the Underworld. Now fully awake and fully powered, he was even more terrifying a sight to behold, standing hundreds of feet high, towering over them like a vengeful god. Ryukoytsei himself would have been dwarfed by Magatsuhi, whose body was molten rock and whose eyes were hot coals of fury and vengeance.

Soldiers quaked in their boots, some trembling fearfully at this new enemy.

"Hold the line! HOLD THE LINE!" Kagome commanded.

Her voice carried to every one of them, and miraculously, they somehow found the courage to do so. This was only aided by the sight of two demon lords stepping down the line to stand at the forefront of the battle, shielding the ranks of humans behind them. The two brothers glared up at their sire. And then, like an unstoppable force of nature, Magatsuhi descended upon them.

Inutaisho growled up at the behemoth, snarling at Magatsuhi. "First strike's _mine_ , brother!" he declared, filling his claws with lightning and letting it fly. It struck Magatsuhi's volcanic flesh, which erupted like molten lava as the eternal demon roared in pain. Several balls of flaming rock came hurtling towards them, but Naraku batted them away from himself and his brother with a wave of his hand.

Their blows struck true, and pain they caused, but Magatushi was a demon as far above Inutaisho and Naraku as they themselves were above most humans. A sweep of his molten hand devastated a nearby village, cracking it asunder and reducing its screaming citizens to so much ash. Magatsuhi laughed at the sight of the destruction, the sound booming in the air like thunder.

Growling like a wild dog, Inutaisho threw his hands skywards again, calling down more lightning, as Naraku gathered the shadows closer to himself like a protective shield. They could hold off their immortal sire for a while perhaps, but not forever. They needed...

There!

On the horizon, visible against the sky, the flaming paws of Kirara stood out brightly, as did the sword of white light that the hanyou Inuyasha carried. They were galloping across the skies towards Magatsuhi now, ready to end this once and for all.

But it would not be so easy as that. Magatsuhi, seeing him and recognizing his own danger, threw a wave of molten rock through the air at the hanyou and his demonic steed, knocking them from the skies. Kirara and Inuyasha went tumbling through the air, nearly losing the Trinity Blade in the process. The same wave of fire and rock washed over Queen Kagome's forces, devastating them further as soldiers were sent screaming to their deaths and whole regiments were wiped out. Koga was lost amidst such a wave of destruction, howling as a wave of dirt and rock overtook him.

And Magatsuhi drew ever closer, as did the doom of every living thing in the world.

The demon elders shared a glance, knowing instantly what the other planned.

"Together, brother!" Inutaisho said. "It must be together!"

Thrusting out their hands in front of themselves, both demons pooled their energies together. Flashes of electricity and wisps of shadows coalesced around an orb of demonic power. With a joint roar, Naraku and Inutaisho threw the ball of energy at their molten sire, which smashed into his body with the force of a thousand exploding suns. Magatsuhi fell to one knee, and even this caused the very ground to shake, but it was enough. He was vulnerable, and Inuyasha saw his opening. He reared back with his blade to make the final strike as he and Kirara regained their altitude and swooped in for another pass.

But as Magatsuhi fell, one fist descended to keep his balance, smashing into the ground and making the earth erupt as surely as if yet another volcano had come into being. Waves of hot molten lava spewed across the landscape, speeding towards the demon brothers.

Without hesitation, acting purely on instinct, Inutaisho thrust his younger brother behind him, throwing up his hands to shield himself. All of his power, all of his might, all of his strength he threw into the barrier he conjured to shield himself and his brother from the torrent of molten rock. The force was far too much even for he, however, and Inutaisho, King of the Heavens, was sent stumbling, then flying through the air as the molten wave smashed into him, sending him crashing to the ground.

Not wasting any time, Inuyasha tugged on the scruff of Kirara's neck, drawing her higher into the air. Then they came down in a straight dive, right for Magatsuhi's ugly, misshapen face. The eldest demon roared, molten magma pouring from his craggy lips, as Inuyasha snarled back in defiance. This ended here and now.

Flames erupted from Magatsuhi's demonic lungs, washing over Inuyasha and his steed as the white-haired hanyou grimly held on. He bit his lip and fought the flames, never more grateful to be wearing fur of the fire rat robes. They emerged unscathed on the other side of the conflagration and Inuyasha hurled the Blade of Trinity with all of his might, right down Magatsuhi's throat and into his pitch black heart.

Magatsuhi roared as his chest seemed to burst, waves of white fire erupting from his breast as the Trinity Blade unleashed its full demonic power deep with him. The weapons forged by Totosai and wielded by the Demon Lords had finally slain the most powerful of them all. A great shockwave washed over the land, shaking it down to its very bones, as Magatsuhi simply burst apart. Great flaming rocks that made up his body came crashing down as the mightiest and most ancient of destroyers had himself been destroyed. And then even those flaming fragments of rocks crumbled into so much dust, and that into nothingness, blown off by the rising winds. In the end, there was nothing left of him save a very bad memory.

The human soldiers let up a cheer, one echoed by their Queen as Kagome hollered in delight, bow upraised in victory. And her joy only grew as she saw a shape emerge from the smoke and ash, high up in the clouds. It could only have been the great flying cat demon and its rider, Inuyasha.

The man... than hanyou... she loved with all her heart.

All around, the soldiers cheered his name, showering him with their love, praising him for his courage.

"INUYASHA! INUASYAH! INUYASHA!"

"INUYASHA! INUASYAH! INUYASHA!"

"INUYASHA! INUASYAH! INUYASHA!"

* * *

Kirara touched down near the edge of the battle, where the demon lords were. Inuyasha slid off her back, gently patting it, thanking her without words for all of her help. The demon cat gave a mighty purr as fire engulfed her and she resumed her more compact form. Now no bigger than an alleycat, she pawed her way through the ruined battlefield in search of something to eat and a place to rest, feeling she had more than earned both.

Inuyasha, meanwhile, made his way over towards his father and uncle.

Naraku met him halfway, even as Inuyasha saw his father slump against the stone he rested against, his strength failing him once again.

"He's waiting for you," Naraku said. "... before he goes."

His tone left little doubt to the meaning of his words. The white-haired hanyou nodded, stepping around the dark demon and towards his father. He looked to have aged a hundred years in only a few minutes, now looking every bit the old man he truly was. His hair was less a beautiful white now than an aged gray, dotted with dust and ashes.

He did not waste time with pleasantries. "Your boy gave you strength," he whispered, his voice hoarse.

Inuyasha nodded. "Yeah," he replied, not even bothering to ask how he knew. He always seemed to know.

"So did mine," Inutaisho said with a weary smile.

"Is there no chance of saving you?"

The older demon shook his head. "Naraku already used the last of his power to give me the strength to fight."

"And you sacrificed it to save him."

"There will be no more sacrifices... no more demon lords... only you and your kind, Inuyasha," he said wearily.

He faltered, and Inuyasha steadied him, taking his father's hand in his.

"Use your power wisely. Be _better_ than we were. And... thank you... my... son..." he breathed out his last, his body crumbling into dust, which was quickly picked up by the wind and scattered across the sky. More than the passing of another demon, it was the end of an era. The Heavens would stand empty now, and mankind was on its own to forge its own path ahead. For better or for ill. Whether or not the cost had truly been worth it, only time would tell.

Inuyasha watched the dust drift away on the breeze, feeling tears sting at the corners of his eyes... then flicked his golden gaze to Naraku, still standing there. His own demonic aura was rapidly dwindling away to nothing as well. He'd spent everything he had in the fight. Without it, he seemed almost pitifully small and pathetic. A feeble old man hiding in mighty armor meant for a much younger warrior. The demon... no... the man responsible for his families death. And yet Inuyasha felt no rage towards him anymore. He only felt tired.

Naraku must have sensed as much. "All my power is gone," he said wistfully. "My demonic might. My immortal life. I'm only as human as you are now. Mortal. Then again... who knows...? Perhaps I'll be stronger without it."

Inuyasha did not stop him as he turned and began to walk away. Wherever he was going, Inuyashsa found he no longer cared.

* * *

With the battle over and the enemy defeated, Kagome quickly rallied her soldiers to care for the wounded, gathering them up for the healers to see, erecting tents and doing her best to ensure everyone who needed attention was given it. Her generals conferred with her on the best means to begin their return to Edo.

Elsewhere, one particular patient was giving his healer more than a bit of trouble.

"I know it's broke, no need to tell me," grumbled Koga. He winced as the nurse tightened the bandage around his leg, ensuring it would heal. His other was in a similar state, both badly broken. He was healing, demonic blood would ensure he would recover, but it was a painful and slow process. It didn't help he'd almost been buried alive, and only managed to crawl out from under the rocks and gravel long after the battle had ended. Nor was his nurse helping to ease his discomfort, with her constant nagging that he get some rest and stop fidgeting.

Neither was the fact that, underneath those makeshift rags and a healers apron, she was beautiful to look upon, with hair like fire and eyes like emeralds. In another lifetime, he might've been tempted to steal them for himself. Right now, he only wanted to admire them for their beauty.

Sota had managed to join them, descending from Mount Fuji to look for his father. Kagome had found him instead as he'd wandered near her royal tent, and taken an instant liking to the boy.

"If I'm not mistaken... you're the son of Inuyasha," she said, identifying him almost instantly.

"I'm Sota," he replied, bowing politely to the royal queen as he'd been taught.

Inuyasha smiled, pleased. In another lifetime, Sota could've been Kagome's child. Family. As it was, they did get along famously. Perhaps...

Blinking in confusion, the dog hanyou glanced up at Koga, the Sea Wolf trying to catch his eye. Finally having done so, he gestured with his head, urging Inuyasha to go over there. Making the most of a passing moment before it was lost. And when he seemed reluctant to interrupt, the dark-haired hanyou gave a howl of delight, beckoning Sota over to his side, leaving Queen Kagome all by herself.

Inuyasha didn't yet know if he wanted to thank his rival or strangle him... but he knew what he had to do.

"Come over here, my boy," Koga said cheerfully, as Sota approached. "Come and meet your uncle Sea Wolf."

The boy climbed up beside the wolf hanyou and sat down beside him, even as the redheaded nurse continued to fuss about his wounds.

"I'm Koga," he introduced himself.

"Sota. I've read about you," he said. Then, hesitantly added, "I've read that you were a great disappointment." From the tone in his voice, he didn't believe it.

Koga barked a laugh. "That's right, I _am_ great. This is my nurse, Ayame."

While nephew and uncle once removed got acquainted, and the nurse scolded her patient for needlessly fidgeting, Inuyasha climbed to his feet and made his way over to Kagome, still busy coordinating her troops, arranging the markers on the maps. Upon catching sight of his approach, she started speaking immediately.

"We have to be prepared if there's another attack. We're fortifying Edo with the third regiment. Our siege..." she was cut off as Inuyasha swiftly grasped her cheek and chin, tilting her head up and leaned in, sealing his lips over hers. Whatever protest Kagome would have made instantly died in her throat, and she threw her arms around Inuyasha's strong shoulders and held him close as she kissed him back.

They did not stop kissing for quite some time, during which General Hojo and some soldiers discreetly closed the curtains to the tent, giving them their privacy.

* * *

They stood watching over the battlefield. Most of the tents had been broken down and the soldiers were marching home, but Inuyasha and Sota stood side by side as they observed the devastation still there. The bodies of soldiers slain, the remains of monsters defeated. The earth would be blackened and ruined for generations to come. All because of a clash between demons and men for the fate of the world.

"Dad...?" Sota asked hesitantly. "I'm... actually looking forward to going home. I've decided being a boring fisherman isn't that bad after all." After seeing the Demon Warlord up close and personal, and witnessing the most brutal fight in his life, Sota decided he'd be pleased if he never saw another weapon again in his entire life.

"You know we can't go back home," Inuyasha replied. Not after this. His old man had been right, without trying, they'd set themselves up just like the demon lords of old. Koga and Inuyasha had taken up the blades left behind by their fathers and filled in their places. They might not rule, but they would be worshipped for what they'd done. There'd be stories told and songs sung about them. They'd be legends and myths. It had come full circle in the end.

Unsheathing his sword, a simple thing of plain steel, Inuyasha turned it on its hilt, offering it to his son. Sota hesitated.

"Take it," he said. When his son hesitated, he went on. "You're Sota. You're the son of Inuyasha... the _grand_ son of Inutaisho. There's demon blood in your veins. Take it."

Reluctantly, Sota grasped the hilt, taking the blade from his father as he had from his. The blade dropped down low, the tip almost dragging against the ground.

"It's heavy," he said, feeling his arm already shake just trying to hold it up.

"Yeah, it is," Inuyasha agreed. "Is it too much?"

Sota gave a few experimental swings, using both arms. He had greater strength then he knew, hidden beneath the surface. Waiting to be unlocked. Finally, he lifted his head up and shook it. "No."

Inuyasha gave a small smile. He could not have been more proud of his son.

* * *

 **Authors Notes:  
** If you enjoyed, please review and favorite. And thank you all for those already have.

Piku-Chan of Deviantart was kind enough to make some excellent fanart of my personal favorite scene from the movie, where Hades and Zeus were making their final stand. Substituting Naraku and Inutaisho in their places, of course. It can be found on their deviantart page, along with all manner of beautiful and wonderful things.


	16. Closing Credits

And cue closing credits:

. . . Inuyasha as Perseus  
. . . Kagome as Andromeda  
. . . Kikyo as Io  
. . . Bankotsu as Drago  
. . . Miroku as the Djinn  
. . . Koga as Agenor  
. . . Kirara as the Pegasus  
. . . Sota as Helius

. . . The Band of Seven as Honor Guard Soldiers  
. . . Sango and Kohaku as the Hunter-Killer Duo  
. . . Rin as Kagome's Attendant  
. . . Hojo as General Mantius  
. . . Kaede as Clea  
. . . Jaken as Korrina

. . . Inutaisho as Zeus  
. . . Sesshoumaru's Mother as Hera ( _Cameo_ )  
. . . Naraku as Hades  
. . . Choro as Poseidon  
. . . Tekkei as Demeter ( _Cameo_ )  
. . . Sesshoumaru as Ares  
. . . Menomaru as Athena ( _Cameo_ )  
. . . Totosai as Hephaestus  
. . . Midoriko as Aphrodite ( _Cameo_ )  
. . . Myoga as Hermes  
. . . Hiten as Apollo ( _Cameo_ )  
. . . Manten as Artemis ( _Cameo_ )  
. . . Taigomaru as Hestia ( _Cameo_ )  
. . . Toran as Dionysus ( _Cameo_ )

. . . Kagura as the Medusa  
. . . Tsubaki as the Witch  
. . . Takemaru as Calibos  
. . . Unknown as the Mad Priest  
. . . Oni Youkai as the Cyclops( _s_ )  
. . . Goshinki as the Minotaur  
. . . Ryukoytsei as the Kraken  
. . . Magatsuhi as Cronos

Written and directed by Rassilon001, based on characters from Greek Mythology and Popular Anime.


End file.
